## AI in the Workplace: What Workers Really Think

This weekly update covers important news about how artificial intelligence is changing work around the world, especially from the perspective of workers who use these tools every day. The news reveals a complex picture: workers are using AI more than ever, but they are also more worried about their job security than they were just a year ago.

## Workers Are Using AI More, But They Are Scared

A major survey in the United States released on November 24, 2025, asked more than 2,100 workers about their experience with AI. The results show that nearly 9 out of 10 workers, or 87%, now use AI at least once a week. Even more interesting, over half of all workers, about 51%, use AI every single day. This means AI has become a normal part of work for most people in America.

However, there is an important problem. Even though workers are using AI and finding it helpful, they are becoming more and more worried about their jobs. The number of workers who fear that AI might replace them has almost doubled from the year before. Now, more than half of all workers, about 52%, are concerned that AI could eventually take their job. This creates a difficult situation: workers see that AI helps them do their jobs better, but they do not trust that this will keep them safe.

## The Gap Between Leaders and Workers

Business leaders have a very different view of AI than their workers do. A recent study found a huge difference in what leaders think and what workers actually feel. About 76% of company leaders believe that their workers are excited and happy about using AI at work. But the truth is very different. Only 31% of regular workers say they are actually excited about AI. This means leaders are wrong more than two times over about how their workers feel.

The problem gets even bigger when you look at how informed workers feel. When asked if employees understand their company's AI plan, only 30% of regular workers said yes. However, 80% of leaders thought their workers understood the plan. This is a huge gap of 50 percentage points. Workers are also skeptical about whether their opinions matter. While 80% of leaders believe they listen to what workers think about AI, only 27% of workers agree.

## AI Tools Are Replacing Some Jobs Right Now

Several large companies around the world have announced that they are using AI to do work that people used to do. In the United States, one company used AI tools to help customers and was able to reduce the number of support workers from 9,000 people down to 5,000 people. Another company said its AI assistant can now handle work that would need 853 full-time workers to do. These are real examples of how AI is already changing the number of jobs available.

Company leaders are being more honest about this now. The CEO of one large company said in an interview that AI agents help the company do more work with fewer people. However, some companies say they are not actually replacing workers. Instead, they say they are moving workers to different jobs where the company needs them more. For example, some workers who used to do customer support are now doing other types of work like sales or professional services.

## What Jobs Are Most at Risk?

New research from MIT gives us important information about which jobs might be affected by AI. A study found that current AI tools could already do the work of about 11.7% of all American jobs. This adds up to about 151 million workers and roughly $1.2 trillion in wages. However, it is important to understand what this means. This number shows what AI can technically do and what would be cheaper to do with AI, not that these jobs will all disappear tomorrow.

The jobs most at risk are not factory jobs but office and professional jobs. These include work in finance, healthcare administration, human resources, law, and accounting. These types of jobs were once thought to be very safe from automation because they require thinking and decision-making. But AI can now handle many of these tasks.

## What Workers Want From Their Leaders

Workers are sending a clear message to company leaders about what they need. Even though workers are using AI and finding it helpful, they want something important in return: more training and support. An amazing 84% of workers said they want more training to build their AI skills. This shows that workers understand AI is not going away and they want to be prepared for the future.

Workers also want to see that the money their companies are saving with AI is being shared with them. About 77% of workers say that AI helps them focus on more important work, but they want this improvement to help their own job security and pay too. Workers are asking leaders to reinvest the money saved by AI into training and better jobs for the people who work there. This would show that companies see their workers as partners in change, not just as costs to cut.