AI Hiring Slowdown Hits Young, Entry-Level Workers Hardest

Artificial intelligence is disproportionately affecting young and entry-level workers, with new research indicating they are experiencing employment slowdowns at more than three times the rate of the broader workforce. A study by Goldman Sachs, which analyzed over 800 occupations across developed economies, found that a 10 percent increase in a job's exposure to AI was associated with a significantly larger reduction in hiring for entry-level positions compared to the overall workforce.

The findings come alongside official data from South Korea and the United Kingdom that highlight sharp declines in youth employment within sectors highly exposed to AI. In South Korea, the Bank of Korea reported that employment among people aged 15 to 29 fell by 285,000 between June 2022 and June 2026. Crucially, 94 percent of those losses, or 268,000 jobs, occurred in industries with high AI exposure, such as information services, publishing, and computer programming.

The central bank also noted a contrasting trend: employment among workers in their 50s rose by 230,000 in the same high-exposure industries, suggesting a shift toward a more seniority-based labor market. The research indicated that...