UN report warns AI poses greater threat to women’s jobs

A new United Nations report, “Gender Snapshot 2025”, has highlighted that women’s jobs are disproportionately at risk from artificial intelligence, with nearly 28% of women’s roles globally threatened, compared to 21% of men’s jobs. 

While the digital future holds the potential to become a powerful equaliser, the report urges immediate action to bridge the gender digital divide.

The snapshot also underscores longstanding disparities in the tech sector: women make up only about 29% of the global tech workforce and a mere 14% of tech leadership positions. With just five years remaining before the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development deadline, the report identifies 2025 as a pivotal year in tracking progress toward gender equality across the Sustainable Development Goals.

The UN warns that without proactive measures, inequality could be coded into the future, reiterating lessons from past disruptions. “It could benefit 343 million women and girls, lift 30 million out of extreme poverty, improve food security for 42 million, and spark $1.5 trillion in global growth by 2030,” the report notes.

To safeguard decades of progress in women’s participation in the labour force, the report recommends investing in women’s digital and technical skills, facilitating smooth transitions across economic sectors, and implementing gender-responsive labour and social protection policies.

The findings highlight that as AI and automation reshape industries worldwide, targeted interventions are crucial to prevent women from being left behind in the rapidly evolving digital economy.

Source: Economic Times 
--Agencies