AI will not trigger employment collapse

 AI will not trigger a collapse in employment despite concerns the technology will displace large numbers of workers, a study by staffing company Adecco Group showed on Thursday .
Employers have cited AI ⁠as responsible for nearly a quarter of job cuts in the ⁠United States this year, global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said. Microsoft said this month it was cutting about 2.1% of its workforce, joining HSBC Holdings, Amazon and ‌Standard Chartered in a wave of ​layoffs as they shift investment ⁠toward AI.
But Denis Machuel, CEO of Zurich-based ​Adecco, the world's largest staffing company, ‌told Reuters some companies were using AI as a cover for cuts caused by weaker performance, restructuring ​or other problems.
'AI is bringing a massive evolution in the world of work, but a job apocalypse is not on the horizon,' he said. 'It's more about changing roles and tasks than eliminating jobs.'
Three and a half years ‌after the release of OpenAI's AI chatbot ChatGPT, employment rates are ​at record highs and unemployment near historic lows, Adecco said, citing data ​from the ‌Paris-based ⁠Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development about its 38 member countries.
Previous industrial revolutions from the advent of steam, electricity, information technology and the ​internet have transformed work without causing mass job destruction, ⁠Machuel said.
'With the ​data we have so far, there's no evidence we will have a different scenario with AI,' he added.
Some entry-level jobs were disappearing but employers could not simply cut junior positions without damaging talent pipelines, ​Machuel said.
Companies needed to reinvent such jobs so AI ​can complement them, Machuel said, noting upskilling, reskilling, and closer collaboration among companies, governments and education systems was essential.