OECD: 27% of jobs at high risk from AI

Over a quarter of jobs in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) rely on skills that could be replaced by artificial intelligence, causing a threat to workers, the OECD stated on Tuesday.

Currently, there is little evidence that AI is having a significant impact on jobs, but it may be because the AI revolution is still in its early stages, said the OECD.

OECD mentioned in its 2023 Employment Outlook, “27 percent of the labor force on average in OECD countries are at the highest risk of being automated, with eastern European countries being the most vulnerable.”

The jobs at highest risk are those using 25 of the 100 skills and abilities that AI experts consider to be easily automated.

According to a survey by the OECD covering 5,300 workers in 2,000 firms spanning manufacturing and finance in seven OECD countries, three out of five workers.

On the other hand, two-thirds of workers working with AI said that automation had made their jobs less dangerous or tedious.

“How AI will ultimately impact workers in the workplace and whether the benefits will outweigh the risks, will depend on the policy actions we take. Governments must help workers to prepare for the changes and benefit from the opportunities AI will bring about,” said the OECD Secretary General, Mathias Cormann.

Minimum wages and collective bargaining could lessen the risks of AI, along with governments and regulators ensuring workers rights are not compromised.