Will AI Cause a Union Boom?

Workers May See Unions as a Political Answer

The world is quite possibly on the precipice of one of the great technological advances in human history, much like the Internet, the printing press, and the steam engine. Artificial intelligence is likely a rubicon that we will never be able to scale back from, and that is causing the same unease by many who see it, at best, as a danger to their livelihood and, at worst, a threat to humanity.

When it comes to AI and the workplace, companies are making it clear that huge portions of their workforce must be retrained in the upcoming years to deal with the new technology.

Michael Chui, a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute, has said that AI won’t lead to double-digit unemployment, just as other technologies didn’t, because many U.S. companies are already working on retraining their workforce.

"There was a time when a vast majority of the workers in the United States were involved in agriculture," he said to Business Insider. "And then years later, far more people were working in factories, for instance. But we didn't end up with 50% unemployment. We have historically been able to do this."

Companies like Bosch and IBM are already investing billions in retraining their workforce, and workers seem open to using AI at their jobs. Still, millions of young workers claim technology is already costing them employment.

A report by Zety found that 43 percent of workers under 25 claim to have lost their jobs due to AI technology.

This begs the question, with AI threatening the livelihood of millions of people, will they take on a political answer to help secure job protection - namely, will more workers turn to unions to protect from artificial intelligence?

Last year, the Writers Guild of America, the union for screenwriters in the entertainment business, crafted a landmark contract with Hollywood production studios regarding AI. Writing jobs are especially vulnerable to AI, and the new contract sought to protect the jobs and wages of Hollywood writers.

According to the Center for Democracy and Technology, the agreement stated:

• AI can’t write or rewrite literary material, and AI-generated material will not be considered source material under the [agreement], meaning that AI-generated material can’t be used to undermine a writer’s credit or separate rights.

• A writer can choose to use AI when performing writing services if the company consents and provides that the writer follows applicable company policies, but the company can’t require the writer to use AI software (e.g., ChatGPT) when performing writing services. 

• The Company must disclose to the writer if any materials given to the writer have been generated by AI or incorporate AI-generated material.

• The WGA reserves the right to assert that exploitation of writers’ material to train AI is prohibited by [the agreement] or other law.

In other words, credit for story creation cannot go to AI companies; writers must follow studio guidelines if they use AI, and it gives writers agency over how AI is used.

Writing is a unique job, and ownership over ideas and writing is not applicable to other jobs. Nonetheless, if unionization provides workers some protection from losing their jobs, it could be something you see more workers turning to.

Unions are one of the few institutions in American life that are gaining increased favorability with the American public. According to a Gallup poll in 2023, labor unions have had the highest favorability since 1965.

More unions are using their influence to protect workers from AI, and more workers are looking to unionize, even in very red states.

The AFL-CIO struck a deal with Microsoft in December of last year to include AI protections in a contract covering several hundred staff members at the company's ZeniMax game studio.

Autoworkers in Tennessee, graduate students at the University of Pennsylvania, Wells Fargo bankers in New Mexico, Amazon workers in Staten Island, Boeing employees in South Carolina, graphic designers at Marvel Studios, and fast food workers all over the country have voted to unionize over the last few years.

This is not a public endorsement of unions, and many are missing the boat when it comes to AI. UPS drivers, for example, did not win any AI protections during a recent battle over wages.

Nonetheless, as workers increasingly see their jobs threatened, they may see unions as the political solution to the problem.