While the majority of American workers are not worried about being replaced by rapidly advancing technology, a poll has revealed that the number of those who fear a trend has risen to its fastest rate ever.
The Gallup Poll, which started in 2017, showed that fear of becoming obsolete (FOBO) has grown more in the past two years than at any time in the history of the poll.
According to the Sept. 11 Gallup Poll, 22 percent of workers fear that new technology will eventually replace them. In 2021, that figure was 15 percent, indicating a jump of seven percentage points. Previous polls on the topic remained steady between 13 and 17 percent.
The polling organization found that the current rise in FOBO is almost entirely amongst college-educated workers, which went up from eight to more than double at 20 percent. FOBO for workers without college degrees was unchanged at 24 percent since 2021.
Previous concerns about technological replacement were mostly limited to non-college-educated workers. However, recent advancements have roused a similar level of concern among both groups.
The gap between younger and older workers, and the gap between those making less and those making more than $100,000 a year, continues to increase.
FOBO also increased by two percentage points among workers over 55 years old and by 11 percentage points for those aged 18 to 34. Meanwhile, workers making less than $100,000 annually recorded a 10 percent increase in FOBO, while those making over $100,000 saw a five-point increase.
Concerns have risen equally among men and women, with both genders expressing a similar rise in fear between age groups.
Although the number of workers worried about artificial intelligence (AI) and other technological advancements replacing their jobs rose 22 percent, a reduction in benefits is still the most common concern for workers.
Out of the six major concerns in the survey, only the fear of technology taking over jobs has gone up significantly since 2021. The other five job fears in the list below are still well below their highs from after the Great Recession (between mid-2009 to mid-2013):
- The fear of being laid off
- The fear of work hours being cut back
- The fear of wages being reduced
- The fear of benefits being reduced
- The fear of companies outsourcing jobs overseas
Meanwhile, the loss of benefits and wage reduction remain as the top concerns American workers are worried about. Gallup said those are major issues for roughly one in five workers.
At least a third, or 31 percent, of respondents shared that they were worried about losing their job benefits in the near future, followed by wage reductions at 24 percent.
At least 20 percent of workers were worried about being laid off, and having their hours cut back was a problem for 19 percent of respondents. Offshoring was the least worrisome fear at seven percent, the lowest in Gallup's trend by one point.
College-educated Americans worried about the rise of AI use
The results of the Gallup poll come as many actors and writers complain about Hollywood studios' use of AI amid strikes and calls for regulations around the use of the technology.
As one of their key demands, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) has asked that studios "regulate use of material produced using artificial intelligence or similar technologies" in television and movie productions.
After the release of ChatGPT in November 2022 revealed that AI can now mimic human language, many workers have become increasingly worried about what computers can do in the workplace.
Instead of robots replacing humans in warehouses and on assembly lines, technological change also means that AI software can now conduct some sophisticated online tasks, like writing computer code.
While the minority of workers are worried about an imminent threat to their jobs, most are less worried today about their work than they were two years ago, especially since the majority of workers are positive about the U.S. labor market.
Andrew Crapuchettes, CEO of hiring website RedBalloon, said that even amid the technological advancements made in the last five years, "human creativity will always be in demand."
He noted that these kinds of advancements will help people upgrade their skills to "find more meaningful work and not just waste away doing meaningless toil."
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