A labor market is the system in which workers supply labor and employers demand it under prevailing employment conditions. Generative AI is changing this system by creating opportunities for higher productivity while also raising the possibility of job displacement, unequal gains, and deeper inequality. section 6.10 section 6.11
The emerging relationship between generative AI and labor markets includes several tensions:
- Productivity may increase, but some jobs or tasks may disappear. section 6.10
- AI may empower workers and expand access to services, or reinforce existing hierarchies. section 6.10 section 6.11
- Education, infrastructure, worker safeguards, and fair-competition rules can influence whether growth is inclusive. section 6.10
- The long-term result remains uncertain, while definitions of work, creativity, and expertise are already changing. section 6.11
Two possible trajectories
A labor market using generative AI could experience a productivity renaissance supported by education and safeguards, or it could deepen inequality through uneven benefits and worker displacement. section 6.10
