Workers with knowledge of artificial intelligence (AI) will receive a 25% pay rise. The industries most affected are financial companies, the IT industry, and professional services. Those most impacted by generative AI are experiencing a significant increase in labor productivity and wages, according to PwC's Global AI Employment Impact Barometer 2024.
PwC's report, which analyzes more than half a million job postings in 15 countries, including Spain, highlights that labor productivity has increased almost fivefold in sectors such as financial services, information technology, and professional services, with an average salary premium of up to 25% for workers with AI skills.
The study emphasizes that AI could solve endemic productivity problems in many economies. In this context, it recalls that productivity in OECD countries has only increased by 1.1% in the last decade.
Furthermore, the authors argue that this technology will boost economic growth, increase wages, and ultimately positively impact the population's standard of living.
The report notes that AI is already bringing tangible improvements, unlike the computer revolution, which took time to be reflected in productivity. According to the PwC 2024 Global CEO Survey, 84% of CEOs whose companies are already using this technology expect an increase in employee efficiency.
Oportunity
Armando Martínez-Polo, AI leader at PwC, explains in Expansión that the artificial intelligence revolution "offers a huge opportunity to improve our productivity and work experience." He also points out that the market demands AI skills beyond the technological field, "so acquiring these skills is necessary for everyone, regardless of our professional experience."
Since 2016, demand for AI-related jobs has grown faster than overall, reflecting the increasing demand for these skills. Furthermore, since 2012, job postings requiring these skills have grown 3.5 times faster than the rest.
This increase is particularly marked in the financial services sector, where the proportion of job postings for AI-related profiles is 2.8 times higher than in other sectors. It is three times higher in professional services and five times higher in technology.
Furthermore, these jobs have an average salary premium of up to 25%, highlighting the value of these skills to businesses. The data comes from five major markets: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Singapore.
Salary premium
Several examples illustrate the positive impact on wages. For example, commercial directors with AI skills earn 43% more than their colleagues without these skills in the United States. In the United Kingdom, lawyers with AI skills receive a salary premium of 27%.
The report's authors argue that AI can help address staff shortages in some sectors. In occupations such as customer service and information technology, which are exposed to AI's impact, job postings continue to increase, albeit at a slower rate than average.
The report shows that the skills required in occupations more impacted by AI change 25% faster than in occupations less impacted. New requirements are replacing traditional skills. Therefore, workers in these positions need to acquire new skills.
Martínez-Polo points out that this new landscape "requires companies to adapt their recruitment and training processes to these skills."
On the other hand, employees "need to bring themselves up to speed," says the PwC partner. He concludes: "Thanks to artificial intelligence, Companies will achieve productivity gains, and employees will see an improvement in their salary conditions."
