A study found that more jobs held by women are exposed to AI and automation. Morsa image—Getty Images
Artificial intelligence is widely predicted to impact virtually every business sector and, by extension, every workplace. A study by software firm ServiceNow earlier this month found that by 2027, about 4.9 million jobs in the United States could be transformed by the technology, and another 5.9 million jobs could be created. Predicted. But another study suggests that the technology has seen increased attention following the introduction of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, and is likely to disproportionately affect women in the workplace.
According to the University of North Carolina’s Kenan Flagler School of Business, 80% of working women are in jobs at risk of being disrupted by AI, compared to 60% of men. The gap between men and women is particularly stark, according to the Census Bureau, given that men outnumber women when it comes to full-time employment in the United States.
“The reason why women are more exposed to AI automation than men is simple: working women are more likely to be in white-collar jobs (about 70%) than in blue-collar jobs (about 30%). For men, it’s about 20%, compared to 50/50,” writes marketing professor and study author Mark McNeely.
The report draws on Goldman Sachs’ March survey of the 15 occupations most impacted by AI, including roles in management, engineering and legal. The study then considers the number of people employed in these industries and breaks down that total by gender.
The findings show that nearly two-thirds of jobs will be impacted by generative AI, and between 25% and 50% of tasks in those jobs will be automated.Goldman Sachs predicted earlier this year that about 300 million jobs worldwide could be affected by AI.
Fear of job losses from AI has been prevalent in recent months, with recruitment firm Challenger Gray and Christmas saying the introduction of AI killed 4,000 jobs in May alone. It says. The gender-based impact of this technology is largely explained by the roles women and men currently play. But it’s not all bad news. According to Goldman Sachs, increased use of AI in the workplace could boost annual global GDP by 7%. This means more economic activity by creating more demand and creating more jobs. .
“Whether change is good or bad for an individual worker depends on their profession, company, individual ability and adaptability. Some adjust better than others. There will be winners and losers. ‘” McNeely wrote.
Other reports confirm findings that women are more vulnerable to the impact of AI in the labor market. For example, Revelio Labs, a workplace analytics firm, analyzed the roles most likely to be impacted by powerful generative AI tools that could take on existing tasks or entire jobs. These jobs include jobs such as interpreters, programmers, and telemarketers. A whopping 71% of jobs exposed to AI are women, according to Revelio research.
Rebellio economist Hakki Ozdenoren said in a post last week, “Although AI tools like ChatGPT are not trained to displace specific demographics, AI’s discriminatory effects are likely to be seen across genders in the workforce as a whole. comes from the unequal distribution of “For example, technical positions are underrepresented by women, and ‘support’ positions such as administrative assistants are over-represented by women. As it happens, AI capabilities often overlap more with support jobs. “
The study went a step further and showed that more people of color were employed in AI-affected occupations. A total of 32.9% of people of color are in jobs most exposed to AI. Just being there.
Ozdenolen stresses that technology could reallocate labor to more productive jobs, even if some jobs are being exposed to AI.
“AI tools can automate routine and repetitive tasks performed by clerks, freeing clerks to engage in more productive and fulfilling aspects of their jobs,” he said.
AI has the potential to wreak havoc in the workplace, which has led many to consider what the technology might bring in the future. Companies are experimenting with providing AI tools to their employees. Some of these experiments have had great success in the past, increasing employee work pace by 35% and increasing productivity by 14%. Consulting firm Accenture predicts that generative AI could affect an employee’s 40% of his working hours, which could help improve performance in the workplace.
