AI is hurting you at work (but it doesn't have to)

Since the introduction of ChatGPT in 2022, big-tech executives and the media have been touting the potential of AI for society to reach an unprecedented level of growth and productivity. They claim that the technology already has the ability to act like junior level employees, and will replace mid-level software engineers by the end of the year.

As a result, tech employers have shown an almost evangelical fervour in pushing workers to use AI in the name of increased efficiency. In 2025, tech executives and managers are clearly telling workers: using AI is no longer optional if you want to stay competitive.

But beneath the blind optimism, there’s a darker reality: the forced use of AI is already reshaping working conditions (and not for the better). While your boss may be focused on the alleged benefits of AI, here are some of the ways you and your coworkers may already be hurt by it:

1. Your work gets undervalued #

GenAI can only produce outputs. When your employer treats it as a substitute for your labor, they imply that your work is only valuable for what is visible: code shipped, designs produced, tickets closed, or documents written.

But as we all know, your output is supported by invisible effort. Every task involves interpreting requests based on context, drawing on past experiences and judgement, anticipating problems before they arise, and collaborating with others while accounting for their perspective and needs.

Some of your labor does not produce a measurable output at all, but creates ripple effects that make everyone around you more effective, like mentoring a colleague, sharing insights, or contributing to a positive working culture.

All of this cannot be replicated by AI. And this is reflected by research: there has not been conclusive evidence which shows that AI has delivered the promised productivity gains.

By treating your job as replaceable by a machine, your boss not only dehumanises you, but also erases the majority of your labor that makes you effective.

2. Your scope of work is increasing (and burning you out) #

The myth that AI increases productivity means that you are now expected to do more with less. You’re responsible for your usual work plus whatever AI allegedly enables you to do faster without additional time or support. On top of that, your job description now also includes training AI, fixing its mistakes, and managing automated workflows, which may actually slow you down (especially given the quality of AI slop).

In addition, as some roles are eliminated because they’re seen as ‘replaceable’, others are expected to pick up those tasks. Designers may find themselves writing copy. Product managers may be expected to code. This blurs role boundaries and creates confusion over who is actually responsible for what.

The combination of scope creep, unclear expectations, and added workload directly contributes to higher stress and potential burnout.

3. You’re losing your autonomy #

As your employer pushes widespread adoption of AI tools, your work increasingly needs to be consumable by these systems. Documents, code, designs, and communications must be structured, labeled, or formatted in ways that allow AI models to easily process them. This “datifying” of your work adds bureaucracy and changes how you do your job.

Since executives are looking to justify their AI investment, they are likely pressuring you to use specific tools instead of allowing you to decide what works best for you. And they may be increasing surveillance to make sure you fall in line: companies such as Meta , Google and Microsoft have increased monitoring specifically to measure AI adoption, and demand for worker-tracking software has increased to justify AI costs.

These trends transform daily work into a series of inputs for systems that monitor and score you, all at the expense of your autonomy.

4. You have little-to-no insight into decision-making #

AI is increasingly being used to make decisions about hiring, promotions, and performance reviews. However, the inner workings of these systems are rarely understood by the people they impact, making it difficult to challenge errors or understand why certain conclusions were reached. At worst, managers may decide not to take accountability for these decisions, hiding behind the supposed objectivity of a ‘fair and unbiased’ algorithm.

In some cases, companies have also used AI to justify confusing decisions. For example, Booking.com executives cited ‘remaining competitive in the new AI landscape’ as one reason in justifying the latest round of mass layoffs, despite the company reporting a record $5.9bn profits in 2024. AI becomes a convenient cover for actions that may otherwise appear arbitrary.

Without transparency, employees are left disempowered and unsure of how to navigate decisions that affect their careers.

AI amplifies structural problems #

At best, executives are using AI as a shortcut for addressing existing challenges in the workplace. Struggling with information silos? Add a company AI chatbot. Customer support complaints piling up? Deploy support bots. Don’t have the right skills in your workforce? Ask your workers to fill the gaps with AI tools.

However, the truth is that it probably doesn’t matter how well these solutions perform. Today, AI is used as a blanket excuse for tech companies to legitimise practices they’ve already intended; underpaying workers, eroding worker protections, and conducting mass lay-offs.

Technology cannot replace ethical management. By worsening the foundational issues of overwork, underinvestment, and inequity, AI only amplifies the ongoing power struggle between employers and workers.

AI can’t fix what’s broken, but workers can #

While tech executives want you to believe this AI future is inevitable, you have the power to shape a different reality. Labor movements abroad in Amazon, Uber/Lyft, and Hollywood have successfully fought against algorithmic management practices, increased surveillance, and the use of GenAI to replace creative work.

As tech workers in the Netherlands, you have meaningful legal tools at your disposal to improve material conditions at work. As a start, you can explicitly add AI safeguards in your Collective Labor Agreements, or urge your works councils bring in employee perspectives when management is making decisions around AI adoption.

Through organised, collective action, you can ensure that technology serves workers, not the other way around.