AI is shutting the door on new hires, not pushing workers out (opens the source in a new tab)
- Sarah O'Connor argues the real AI jobs shock is fewer hires, not mass lay-offs. History fits: boot-sewing machines in Victorian England choked off new artisans rather than sacking existing ones.
- Today's signs match. Lay-offs stay low, entry-level software hiring is falling while demand for seniors holds, Danish firms using AI simply hire more slowly, and call centres shrink because hiring slowed.
- She wants policy aimed at the young: closer ties between schools and employers and more support for start-ups, since retraining schemes such as Sweden's often leave them out.
Why it matters Lay-off numbers can look calm while a generation struggles to land its first job. For countries with big young workforces, India among them, slower entry hiring matters more than headline cuts.
Other side It is early and the data are thin. A recession could still bring abrupt cuts, and young people have often adapted fastest to new technology.