ASA | Bullhorn AI Job Impact: The roles AI is impacting most
The ASA | Bullhorn AI Job Impact is Bullhorn’s latest research, launched in partnership with the American Staffing Association, to show AI’s real impact on the U.S. job market. Updated monthly, the report uses real hiring data to measure how AI is affecting different job categories based on hiring activity. Rather than relying on projections or historical data, it provides near real-time visibility into changes in job availability as they unfold nationwide. Jobs are grouped into three AI impact levels based on how much of the work involved in each role is affected by AI.
September’s data offers a closer look at how AI’s impact varies across the staffing market. Jobs less exposed to AI are holding up better than roles where AI is having a bigger impact, and the data reveals differences across job types and age groups alike.
For staffing leaders, this month’s findings point to where demand is holding up and where it is starting to shift.
Jobs less affected by AI are proving more resilient than most
Roles involving the fewest tasks affected by AI, like truck drivers and mechanics, have declined roughly 13% since January 2023, holding up better than most of the market. Roles most affected by AI, like data entry keyers and customer service representatives, are down 17% to 18% over the same period.
That gap has been building since January 2023, though September brought some improvement for roles most affected by AI. One month does not change the longer-term picture, but whether that continues into Q4 is worth watching.
Jobs most affected by AI are making up a smaller share of all jobs filled
When you look at the market as a whole rather than individual role categories, the same pattern emerges. Since January 2023, roles most heavily affected by AI have made up a marginally smaller share of all jobs filled. The shift is modest and doesn’t point to widespread job losses caused by AI, but it does show a gradual change in the mix of jobs being filled.
What makes this worth paying attention to is how quiet the shift has been. It is not showing up as a sudden drop in any one area. It is showing up month by month, consistently, in which roles staffing firms are being asked to fill. Knowing where that shift is happening before it becomes obvious is where the opportunity is.
Workers 25 years and younger are holding their own, but their share of high-impact roles is shrinking
For younger workers, September’s data tells a more complicated story. Workers 25 and younger continue to fill roles across the staffing market, but since January 2023 they have represented a smaller share of placements in roles most affected by AI in most months.
Two things could help explain this. There may be fewer entry-level openings as more routine tasks become automated, and the roles that remain may increasingly be going to more experienced candidates. The shift is relatively small so far, but the direction is consistent. For staffing firms, that’s a trend worth watching as they consider where to focus recruiting and reskilling efforts.
What staffing leaders should watch next
September’s data shows that the effects of AI are not playing out the same way across the job market. The longer-term differences between job types and age groups offer staffing leaders a useful starting point for understanding where the market is shifting. As more data becomes available, the picture will become clearer.
Check back at the start of each month for the latest ASA | Bullhorn AI Job Impact data to help you stay ahead of the market.
