Not a surprise, but here's some actual data about what CEOs are planning.
https://gizmodo.com/the-young-are-being-battered-by-ai-as-hiring-shifts-to-older-workers-2000759608
Job prospects for early-career workers took a turn for the worse last year.
In the first quarter of the year, the job market for 22-to-27-year-olds “deteriorated noticeably,” according to a New York Fed report. Later, Fed Chair Jerome Powell admitted that AI might be partly to blame. Companies that would have ordinarily hired recent graduates are now increasingly trying to have AI assistants automate that work, Powell explained. By the end of the year, the job market for these young workers was at its harshest since the worst days of the pandemic.
Now, a global survey of CEOs by consulting firm Oliver Wyman indicates that things could get even worse over the next two years.
According to the survey, the share of CEOs saying that they were looking to reduce junior roles over the next year or two doubled to 43% from 17% just last year. Only 17% of CEOs said they are shifting hiring to focus on more junior positions.
Instead of young workers, executives are increasingly focusing on hiring older workers. Roughly 30% of respondents said they are shifting hiring to more mid-level roles, up from only 10% last year.
The change is AI-driven, the report concludes.
“Notably, the CEOs with the longest planning horizons are the most likely to plan headcount reductions,” the report said. “That suggests they expect a structurally leaner organization not as a cost measure but as the destination — the endpoint of an AI-augmented operating model that requires fewer people, deployed differently.”
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I'm not seeing that here in FL. It doesn't matter which age group you are in. If you're looking for work, you're experiencing issues with getting hired. Companies are keeping job postings up, but aren't hiring like they used to. And those that are hiring, can afford to be as picky as they want due to the large numbers of people looking for work. Another problem is these companies are now using "AI" to filter and screen out resumes. It sounds good on paper to use them, as it saves H.R. Mgrs time and effort scrolling through hundreds or thousands of resumes, but these programs are filtering them in a way that requires "perfect" candidates to check off even the smallest of useful boxes. So, these HR Depts are screening a lot of good candidates right out of the system without realizing it.
As for the trades, I am a knowledgeable tradesman in many areas, yet I can't find a job because these companies are requiring years of experience ON TOP of schooling. AND they're using "AI" to help screen for candidates. I know a bunch of companies that say they are hiring in the areas I'm knowledgable, yet I'm not being contacted. On top of those reasons, these companies are also still only paying at wages that have been the same for at least 10 yrs, some of them with wages that have been stagnant for 2 decades or more.
It's all one big farcical event, imho. I've applied to hundreds of job postings, for months now, and have only had a handful of interviews. And each email after those interviews has been the same.
Even the Federal Govt is playing games with the public in how they report "new jobs." Most of those jobs are underpaid, or are jobs that 10-15 yrs ago would've been considered part time.
I know this sounds like complaining, but I've had real conversations with people on both sides of the hiring lines, and almost every one has acknowledged that these problems exist and no one knows how to fix them. So here we are.