AI Is Reshaping the Job Market: Jobs at Risk and Careers Poised to Grow

The emergence and rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is drastically reshaping the workforce. What jobs will be most likely to be replaced by this technology, and what jobs will continue to see robust growth? This is what you need to know if you will be in the market for a job in the years ahead.

How AI is Driving the Job Market

The advent of AI has been the most consequential factor in the U.S. job market in decades. New projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) are shedding a little light on which jobs can expect major gains and which industries will suffer as AI becomes more entrenched in the workplace.

According to the BLS projections released on August 27, the U.S. economy is expected to add roughly 5.9 million jobs between 2025 and 2035. This is an increase of about 3.5%. While this may seem like a healthy gain, it is slower than the growth demonstrated over the previous decade. Total employment is forecast to jump from 170.3 million to 176.2 million.

As AI continues to change the job landscape, it is becoming clearer that administrative jobs see some of the biggest losses. According to the U.S. Labor Department, jobs such as typists, clerks, and data entry specialists will be victims of the "continued integration of automation tools, including those powered by AI.”

The BLS report breaks down the job loss predictions into two categories. The first category looks at the largest percentage drops. Jobs that can be replaced by automated functions will likely see the greatest losses. A good amount of these losses will come out of sectors that had previously leaned on hand craftsmanship but have now been replaced by automated systems.

This includes word processors and typists, telephone operators, switchboard operators, data entry keyers, foundry mold and core makers, metal and plastic pattern makers, telemarketers, hand grinding and polishing workers, mining roof bolters, and hand cutters and trimmers.

The second metric examines the total number of employees lost in each sector. Leading the list in this category are cashiers. This is already evident to most consumers, as self-checkout stands have become more commonplace at retail stores. Although cashiers will lose just 6.5% of their workforce between 2025 and 2035, the fact that so many people work in this role means that the volume of positions lost will be the highest. According to the latest Labor Department statistics, approximately 200,600 cashier jobs will be eliminated by 2035.

Other jobs that are forecast to plummet in the years ahead in terms of total employees are office clerks, customer service representatives, secretaries and administrative assistants, bookkeepers and accounting personnel, shipping and receiving clerks, retail store managers, correctional officers and jailers, and bank tellers.

Jobs Expected to See the Most Growth

Not all of the news is bad. While AI is certainly leading to a lot of job loss as tasks become more automated, some sectors of the market are forecast to grow substantially in the coming years. As a whole, the greatest gains are expected in technology and healthcare over the next decade. A rapidly aging population requiring more healthcare and increased energy demands will fuel the expansion in these sectors.

The BLS reports that the largest percentage gains will be in healthcare support, healthcare practitioners, life and social sciences, social service, computers and math, nurse practitioners, solar photovoltaic installers, data scientists, wind turbine service technicians, and medical and health service managers.

It is important to note that these are simply projections based on expected trends. In today's rapidly evolving technology space, one new big breakthrough can quickly change the trajectory of any sector. Keeping your technology skills sharp, learning soft skills that cannot be automated, and being flexible will help to ensure that you remain marketable in this fluid workforce.

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