Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work: Mitigating AI-Induced Unemployment through Strategic Policy Implementation

Abstract

AI technologies in businesses will have on employees. Many scholars and pundits are predicting that AI could lead to substantial technological unemployment in the near future. This paper seeks to answer the following research question: What effect will the implementation of AI technologies have on employment and in what way can policy be adopted to minimize the risk of future large scale unemployment? Through an extensive investigation and analysis of the leading scholarly papers in this field the conclusion was reached that the current trajectory of AI adoption by businesses is likely to lead to substantial short term frictional unemployment. However, this scenario can be avoided if businesses implement AI in such a way as to compliment workers instead of automating their jobs. By complimenting the work of current employees, AI technology can increase their marginal productivity and automate the routine tasks whilst increasing overall output for businesses. This scenario is unlikely to occur unless policy is implemented to steer the adoption of AI in this direction. Workers will also need to be re-skilled in key human, niche technical, and conceptual skills in order to most effectively complement AI technology. This thesis has concluded that whilst the current future for AI and workers is not encouraging, with the correct implementation of policy, a more promising future may be ahead.