NYC Companies Silent on AI Replacing Jobs
▼ Summary
– Despite over 160 companies in New York filing mass layoff notices, none have officially cited “technological innovation or automation” as the reason, even though this option has been available on state forms for 11 months.
– New York became the first state to require companies to specify if AI prompted layoffs, adding this option to gain better insight into the impact of technology on employment.
– Major companies like Amazon and Goldman Sachs, which are known AI adopters and have internally linked layoffs to AI productivity gains, attributed their New York workforce reductions to traditional economic factors in their official filings.
– The absence of AI as a cited reason in filings suggests companies may avoid the reputational risk of admitting to AI-driven cuts, or that AI is not yet a primary driver of layoffs compared to conventional factors.
– State officials verify filing accuracy, and while national data shows many companies attribute job cuts to AI, the New York-specific records highlight the difficulty in definitively answering whether AI is currently causing widespread job losses.
While headlines often warn of an imminent wave of job losses due to artificial intelligence, official data from New York State tells a different story. Since March of last year, over 160 companies have filed notices for mass layoffs, yet not a single one has cited technological innovation or automation as the cause. This is despite the fact that many of these firms, including corporate giants like Amazon and Goldman Sachs, are actively integrating AI tools into their operations. New York became the first state to add this specific option to its required Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) forms nearly a year ago, but the state’s Department of Labor confirms that the box remains unchecked.
The disconnect between public discourse and official filings is striking. Companies frequently promote the efficiency gains from automating repetitive tasks in customer service, sales, and accounting. However, directly attributing layoffs to AI carries a significant risk of reputational damage. Furthermore, economists note that tracing job cuts directly to new technology is inherently difficult, as corporate reorganization around these tools can unfold over many years. To gain clearer insight, Governor Kathy Hochul mandated that the state labor department explicitly ask if AI was a driving force behind workforce reductions.
On the WARN forms, businesses with 50 or more employees must select from a list of 17 potential reasons for layoffs, which includes options like bankruptcy, merger, and relocation. If a company were to select the technology and automation option, a follow-up question prompts them to specify whether the change is due to AI, robotics, or software modernization. Since the new option was introduced, over 750 notices affecting nearly 28,300 workers have been filed without AI being cited. This could indicate that companies are avoiding the question, or it may suggest that traditional economic factors remain the primary drivers of job loss.
The filings cover a wide range of industries. Some, like caterers and retailers, involve roles not widely considered vulnerable to current AI capabilities. Conversely, major financial and tech firms that are known AI adopters also appear in the data. Goldman Sachs led in reported layoffs, affecting over 4,100 workers in the state, while Amazon was among the top ten with 660 affected positions. Morgan Stanley, another firm investing heavily in AI, reported 260 job cuts. Internally, however, these companies have acknowledged AI’s role. Goldman Sachs has linked layoffs to AI-driven productivity gains, Amazon has warned that AI benefits would lead to job reductions, and sources indicated a portion of Morgan Stanley’s cuts were related to automation.
A broader national analysis by the outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that nearly 55,000 U.S. companies did attribute job cuts to AI adoption last year in their public statements. The silence in New York’s unique data set underscores the challenge in answering the pressing question of whether AI is actively displacing workers. An Amazon spokesperson stated that AI is not the reason for the vast majority of their cuts, emphasizing that their goal is reducing organizational layers and bureaucracy. Goldman Sachs declined to comment, and Morgan Stanley did not respond to requests.
The WARN system is designed to give state agencies advance notice of layoffs so they can deploy job-seeking assistance services. Companies face fines for non-compliance, and the state labor department follows up with each employer to verify the accuracy of the filings. For instance, in Amazon’s case, the company listed “economic” reasons for its layoffs, explaining to the department that it was reducing staff hired during the pandemic’s online shopping surge who were no longer needed. This meticulous verification process suggests the reported data is carefully reviewed, making the absence of any AI-related claims all the more notable.
(Source: Wired)
