Bank of Korea Report Reveals Sharp Decline in Youth Employment in AI-Heavily Exposed Sectors

A report released by the Bank of Korea on Tuesday indicates that since the emergence of generative AI chatbots, youth employment rates in industries significantly exposed to artificial intelligence technology have dropped sharply.

According to the central bank's analysis, employment among individuals aged 15 to 29 fell by 285,000 positions during the four-year period spanning June 2022 to June 2026.

Of the total decline in employment, 268,000 jobs, or 94%, were concentrated in industries with high exposure to AI, including information technology services, publishing, computer programming, and professional services.

In contrast, employment for individuals aged 50 and above increased by 230,000 jobs during the same timeframe, with 173,000 of those new positions coming from AI-affected industries.

The report uses 2022 as its starting point because ChatGPT was launched later that same year.

By sector, youth employment in IT services dropped by 31.4% over the period, while the publishing sector, which includes software and web design professionals, saw a 27.4% decline.

Youth employment in computer programming fell by 16.6%, and the professional services sector recorded an 11.6% decrease.

The Bank of Korea's report also highlights unemployment data broken down by education level, which similarly reflects the vulnerability of young people to AI disruption. Between 2019 and 2022, the average unemployment rate for young adults with bachelor's or graduate degrees was 8.2%, compared to 8% for those with only secondary or vocational education. After 2022, these rates fell to 7% and 5.4% respectively, widening the gap between the two groups to 1.6 percentage points.

The central bank noted that Korea's ongoing population decline may have partially influenced changes in youth employment conditions, while the advent of AI could be accelerating this trend.

"AI can significantly enhance the productivity of young workers, which also implies that they may be replaced by AI," said Oh Sam-il, a researcher at the Bank of Korea's research department.

"However, we cannot assert that AI is the sole cause of the reduction in youth employment. Rather, it is accelerating the ongoing contraction of career opportunities for young people."