UN report warns women face greater threat from AI-driven job losses

The United Nations has issued a stark warning that women face a significantly higher risk than men of losing their jobs to artificial intelligence.

In its latest annual report, Gender Snapshot 2025, the UN estimates that 28% of women’s jobs worldwide are at risk of automation, compared with 21% of men’s roles. The findings highlight deepening gender disparities as the global workforce braces for sweeping technological disruption.

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The analysis found that women are disproportionately concentrated in positions most vulnerable to replacement by generative AI — including clerical, administrative and financial roles. The problem is particularly acute in high-income nations in the global north, where occupational structures and gendered job segregation make women’s roles more susceptible.

Data from Latin America and the Caribbean further illustrate the trend. According to the report, the worker at highest risk is typically a young, urban woman with medium to high levels of education and relatively higher income. Women employed in banking, finance, insurance and public sector roles are expected to face the sharpest impact.

The UN cautioned that without targeted interventions, such as building women’s technical capacity, these trends could worsen the global gender pay gap.

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“This report provides only an estimate of the disruption ahead,” the authors wrote. “If lessons are not learned and investment is not made in upskilling women, the risks posed by AI will deepen existing inequalities.”