On average, American workers with artificial intelligence skills receive up to 25% higher salaries, according to PwC, but some jobs can see double that.
The consulting firm analyzed half a billion job postings from 15 countries to examine the impact of AI on jobs, skills, wages and productivity. in one report published Third, they say the 25% AI skills premium in the US is higher than the UK’s 14%, Canada’s 11%, Singapore’s 7% and Australia’s 6%.
Digging deeper into individual occupations, PwC found that US job ads for designers and database administrators asking for AI skills offered salaries 53% higher than Category ads do not require AI skills.
That’s not surprising since data centers are exploding because generative AI technology requires massive capacity to train large language models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. In fact, the leading supplier of AI chips Nvidia reported a more than threefold increase in revenue in the first quarter, led by sales to data centers.
But lawyers can also give them raises. US job postings seeking lawyers with AI skills promise 49% higher salaries than ads for lawyers without AI skills.
Similarly, sales and marketing managers with AI skills could see a 43% pay increase, while financial analysts and accountants could see increases of 33% and 18%, respectively.
“Countries and sectors with high demand for AI skills tend to see higher salaries, especially if there is a shortage of skilled professionals, while in regions with a richer supply of AI talent, the Higher wages are more likely,” Mehdi Sahneh, senior economist at PwC UK, said in a statement. “While on the surface lower wages may sound less favorable, all other factors being equal, they indicate a balance between labor supply and demand and are likely to promote the use and innovate more AI over the long term.”
PwC also points out that some “AI-exposed occupations” such as customer service are experiencing 27% slower job growth, suggesting AI is easing labor shortages.
The report points out that the data does not signal an era of job losses but instead a period of gradual growth.
However, demand for some personal skills is rising while some skills that AI can perform are falling. For example, demand for AI/machine learning reasoning skills has increased by 113%, but demand for coding with Javascript, which can be replaced by AI, has decreased by 37%, according to PwC. Elsewhere, demand for computer graphics skills is down 30% and demand for cold calling skills is down 37%.
But other skills that require more person-to-person contact are in greater demand. Yoga skills increased by 426%, sports instruction by 178%, child protection by 156% and laser hair removal by 84%.
“Many people who predict AI will cause a sharp decline in jobs are asking the wrong question,” PwC said. “Those who predict AI will have a negative impact on overall jobs often look back and ask whether AI can perform some tasks the same way they have been performed in the past. The answer is yes. But the right question to ask is: How will AI give us the power to do radically new things, create new roles and even new industries?”
In the first day of this month, Microsoft and LinkedIn’s 2024 annual work trends index found that 71% of leaders prefer to hire candidates with AI skills over those with more conventional experience, and only 25% of companies have plans for innovative AI training this year.
That could give younger candidates an advantage as the report revealed that 77% of leaders intend to give greater responsibility to those entering the profession with AI proficiency.
