Entry-Level Workers Face AI 'Job-Pocalypse'; US Probes Tesla's Self-Driving System
The Guardian
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Details
- Date Published
- 8 Oct 2025
- Priority Score
- 3
- Australian
- Yes
- Created
- 9 Oct 2025, 01:47 pm
Description
Business leaders are prioritising automation through AI to fill skills gaps, rather than training junior employees, survey finds
Summary
The article highlights a concerning trend where businesses are increasingly prioritizing AI-driven automation over hiring or training new entry-level employees. A study by the British Standards Institution reveals that AI-enabled headcount reductions are being embraced by many organizations across multiple countries, including Australia, with 41% of leaders indicating this shift. This shift presents significant challenges for the workforce, as a substantial portion of entry-level roles are being cut or expected to be replaced by AI-driven efficiencies in tasks like research and administration. The findings underscore a tension between leveraging AI for productivity gains and maintaining a dynamically skilled human workforce, raising essential questions for global AI governance and workforce policies aiming to balance innovation with sustainable employment. Susan Taylor Martin's comments advocate for a thoughtful integration of AI technologies alongside human workforce investments, emphasizing long-term strategies to mitigate potential existential risks posed by widespread job displacement.
Body
Entry-level workers are facing a ‘job-pocalypse’ due to companies favouring artificial intelligence systems over new hires, a new study of global business leaders shows.A new report by theBritish Standards Institution (BSI)has found that business leaders are prioritising automation through AI to fill skills gaps, in lieu of training for junior employees.The BSI polled more than 850 bosses in Australia, China, France, Germany, Japan, the UK, and the US, and found that 41% saidAI is enabling headcount reductions. Nearly a third of all respondents reported that their organization now explores AI solutions before considering hiring a human.Two-fifths of leaders revealed that entry-level roles have already been reduced or cut due to efficiencies made by AI conducting research, admin and briefing tasks, and 43% expect this to happen in the next year.Susan Taylor Martin,CEOofBSIsays:“AI represents an enormous opportunity for businesses globally, but as they chase greater productivity and efficiency, we must not lose sight of the fact that it is ultimately people who power progress.Our research makes clear that the tension between making the most of AI and enabling a flourishing workforce is the defining challenge of our time. There is an urgent need for long-term thinking and workforce investment, alongside investment in AI tools, to ensure sustainable and productive employment.”Worryingly for those trying to enter the jobs market, a quarter of business leaders said they believe most or all tasks done by an entry-level colleague could be performed by AI.A third suspect their own first job would not exist today, due to the rise of artificial intelligence tools.And… 55% said they felt that the benefits of implementing AI in organizations would be worth the disruptions to workforces.These findings will add to concerns that graduates face a workforce crisis as they battle AI in the labour market. A poll released in August found that half of UK adults fear AI will change, or eliminate, their jobs.Half of UK adults worry that AI will take or alter their job, poll findsRead moreTelecoms firm BT is replacing about 10,000 jobs with AI systems, as part of a wider workforce reduction programme.BT to axe up to 55,000 jobs by 2030 as it pushes into AIRead more