The Blubber

As fears mount over artificial intelligence replacing human jobs, new data suggests women may be more vulnerable than men. A joint report from the United Nations’ International Labour Organization (ILO) and Poland’s National Research Institute (NASK) reveals that roles typically held by women are far more exposed to AI automation than those traditionally held by men.

In wealthier nations, jobs facing the highest risk from AI account for 9.6% of women’s employment, compared to just 3.5% of men’s, according to the findings released Tuesday. Globally, about a quarter of all jobs are potentially exposed to generative AI — a figure that rises to 34% in high-income countries.

The disparity stems largely from the concentration of women in clerical and administrative work — the sector most vulnerable to automation. In the U.S., women held between 93% and 97% of secretary and administrative assistant roles from 2000 to 2019, according to Census Bureau data. Yet women represented only 40% to 44% of the workforce overall during that period. Secretarial and administrative work remains the fifth most common occupation for American women, per Department of Labor data.

Importantly, the report doesn’t account for caregiving roles like health aides, which involve emotional labor and are also heavily dominated by women. These roles are generally considered more resistant to AI disruption.

Automation vs. Augmentation

While headlines often focus on AI’s ability to take over technical jobs like software development, the technology also threatens a wide range of entry-level white-collar roles beyond the admin desk. An April Bloomberg analysis found that AI could perform over half the duties of market research analysts and nearly two-thirds of tasks carried out by sales reps — yet only 9% to 21% of the tasks assigned to their respective managers.

The ILO-NASK study stops short of predicting outright job elimination. Instead, it identifies positions where AI could partially take over tasks, allowing employers and workers to better prepare for inevitable changes.

“This index helps pinpoint where GenAI is likely to have the greatest impact, giving countries a chance to plan ahead and safeguard their labor force,” said Marek Troszyński, a senior expert at NASK.

Harvard Business School’s Rembrand Koning says the path forward for women — and others in vulnerable roles — lies in reframing AI as an ally rather than a threat.

“It really comes down to how we think about AI — as automation or augmentation,” Koning told Fortune. “Yes, it might replace parts of jobs that women are more likely to hold, especially clerical ones. But it could also free them to take on more complex, higher-paying roles. It’s about enabling workers to move up, not just out.”