A Senate report released Monday says AI and automation could replace nearly 100 million jobs across various industries over the next decade.
The report, conducted by Democratic staffers on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), outlines how AI and automation will impact the American economy and workforce.
Sanders, the ranking member on the HELP Committee, has warned of the consequences widespread use of AI and automation can have for workers.
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As part of their investigation, staffers asked ChatGPT, OpenAI’s chatbot, to predict the impact of AI and automation on certain industries.
Of the 20 workforces ChatGPT said would be most affected by the technological rush, 15 will see more than half of their workforces replaced by AI and automation over the next decade.
The workforce most impacted will be fast food and counter employees. According to the report, more than 3 million fast food and counter workers will be replaced over the next 10 years, accounting for 89 percent of the workforce.
Other workforces that will be significantly affected include customer service representatives, laborers and freight, stock and material movers and secretaries and executive assistants — not including legal, medical and executive positions. The report said that 83 percent, 81 percent and 80 percent of those workforces, respectively, will be replaced in the next decade.
The report also calls for policy changes to provide guardrails for workers amid the move to AI and automation, saying the impact of AI and automation “will be determined by a set of choices.”
It calls for, among other pieces of legislation, a standardized 32-hour work week, extended overtime and break protections, a minimum wage of at least $17 an hour, elimination of tax loopholes for corporations that use AI and automation and requirements for corporations to give workers a stake in the business.
Sanders, in a Fox News op-ed published Monday, doubled down on the report’s findings, saying increased technological capacity risks “dehumanizing” individuals.
“We do not simply need a more ‘efficient’ society,” Sanders said. “We need a world where people live healthier, happier and more fulfilling lives.”
