"AI and Labor Relations 'Job Complementary'... Only Less Than 10% of Some Tasks Replaced"

Korea Labor Institute Opening Seminar Held
Director Heo Jae-jun: "AI Affects All Types of Jobs"
High AI Usage Even in Small Businesses
Majority of Job Seekers Say "AI Hiring Is Fairer"

Artificial intelligence (AI) is being evaluated as enhancing work performance rather than replacing human jobs. AI utilization is not insignificant even in small businesses, and a considerable proportion of job seekers believe that AI-based recruitment is fairer than human recruitment.

Heo Jae-jun, President of the Korea Labor Institute, is delivering the opening remarks at the 36th anniversary seminar held on the 31st at the Seoul Press Center, themed "Labor in the AI Era: Redefining Value, Seeking Coexistence, and Preparing for the Future." /

On the 31st, the Korea Labor Institute held a seminar commemorating its 36th anniversary at the Seoul Press Center under the theme "Labor in the AI Era: Redefining Value, Seeking Coexistence, and Preparing for the Future." Heo Jae-jun, president of the Korea Labor Institute, stated, "Unlike previous technologies, the emergence of AI is impacting all types of jobs comprehensively and causing disruptive changes in the labor market," adding, "We aim to explore ways for AI technology and labor to coexist."

Angelica Salvi del Pero, senior advisor at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), who delivered the keynote speech, said, "No negative impact of AI utilization on employment has been confirmed," and "It positively affects workers' job performance and job quality." She also emphasized, "Viewing workers as agents of technological change and consulting with them on how to collaborate with new technologies during the adoption process will maximize AI utilization and its impact."

Jang Ji-yeon, senior research fellow at the Korea Labor Institute and a session presenter, analyzed, "9.8% of jobs in our country have a high possibility of being automated and replaced by AI technology," and "15.9% have augmentation potential to increase productivity using AI." Additionally, he explained, "There is no evidence that AI is replacing managerial, professional, or clerical tasks in companies."

Another presenter, Noh Se-ri, research fellow at the Korea Labor Institute, introduced survey results from industries with high technology utilization such as manufacturing, information and communication, professional science, and service sectors, stating, "AI replaces less than 10% of some tasks rather than massively replacing jobs." Noh added, "Workers using AI perceive it as an assistant, utilizing it to improve work productivity and experience performance enhancement," and "The relationship between AI and labor is complementary to job functions."

In a separate explanation, Noh noted, "Contrary to expectations, AI utilization rates were found to be high in small businesses," diagnosing that "this is generally because access to generative AI is relatively easy." Furthermore, he argued, "The phenomenon of AI adoption is a race against time, and actual changes are rapid," and "Someone must monitor the changes this phenomenon will bring, and the government should take on this role."

Yang Seung-yeop, associate research fellow at the Korea Labor Institute, presented the results of an AI recruitment perception survey conducted in August targeting 1,055 job seekers aged 20 to 39 nationwide. In this survey, 53.9% of respondents perceived AI-based recruitment as fairer, while 46.1% viewed traditional recruitment as fairer. Reasons for considering AI fairer included "transparent and fair" (35.2%), "trustworthy" (33.0%), and "less stressful due to non-face-to-face" (26.4%).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.