California moves to protect employees amid AI disruption

On Thursday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order to explore policy measures addressing AI-related disruptions in the labor market.

The order directs state agencies to work with academic institutions, labor experts, economists, universities, and industry leaders to gather data and develop new labor policies to help workers as AI increasingly eliminates jobs, News.Az reports, citing YahooTech.

“California has never sat back and watched as the future happened to us – and we won’t start now,” Newsom said in a press release. “We have taken the lead on advancing innovation, safety, and transparency. But we must think bigger. This moment demands that we reimagine the entire system — how we work, how we govern, how we prepare people for the future — and that work is starting right here in the Golden State. Today is just the first step as we rewrite policy and direction, creating a future of work that works for all.”

Broadly speaking, the order calls for greater support for worker retraining initiatives, the development of early warning signals for potential labor disruptions and the exploration of ways for workers to share in the wealth created by the increased productivity brought about by AI. It also mandates agencies to reevaluate severance standards, look at subsidized employment programs, and create an “AI playbook to modernize job training programs.”

The executive order is the first of its kind in the nation, and it comes at a time when AI is already leading to large rounds of layoffs across the tech industry. This week, Meta laid off 8,000 workers — around 10% of its workforce. Other tech giants, like Amazon, Oracle and Cloudflare, have also enacted thousands of layoffs in recent months.

While the tech industry is seeing the most impact from AI right now, it’s not expected to remain that way. As The New York Times notes, Anthropic cofounder Dario Amodei has predicted that around half of white-collar jobs could be eliminated over the next five years.

Today’s executive order follows others that Newsom has signed in response to the rise of AI. In March, Newsom signed an order aimed at public safety regulations for AI companies that do business with the state. It may come into conflict with the federal government’s current stance on AI, however. The Trump administration has broadly advocated for a hands-off approach to the AI industry and has sought to preempt state regulations.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli