A projected 230k jobs in Valley will be affected by AI
Training with AI tools is ‘imperative’ for workers to keep jobs, advance in careers
Metro Creative
An AI training is being developed at Maricopa Community Colleges, a half-day course with an initial target audience of workforce education and training providers who can then impart the knowledge onto clients, students and dislocated workers.
More than 8% of the Valley’s workforce could have their jobs affected by artificial intelligence, according to projections from Bloomberg Associates.
It will be “imperative” for affected workers to learn AI tools to keep their jobs or advance in their careers. However, Valley workforce education providers have barely started teaching AI to workers, something the Maricopa County Community Colleges District hopes to soon correct.
Bloomberg Associates Economic Development Consultant Gordon Innes told a workforce development and education conference earlier this month that 230,000 jobs in the region would be affected by AI, with administrative and office support roles being the most likely to be impacted initially. That would be just under 8.7% of the roughly 2.65 million employed residents in the Phoenix area, according to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from April.
Hayden Maynard, the city of Phoenix’s liaison to the Phoenix Business and Workforce Development Board, relayed those statistics to the board’s Instill Hope Steering Committee on Thursday. She noted the workers “affected” by AI would not necessarily be replaced by AI.
The logo for OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, appears on a mobile phone, in New York, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2023.
(The Associated Press/Richard Drew)
“Whether or not a position is reduced or cut — the (conference) panel really reiterated over and over that positions are going to require collaboration with AI tools, and it’s imperative for the workforce to develop these tools to keep their positions and to advance in their careers,” Maynard said.
Only one in 67 local workforce and education providers surveyed said they have explored incorporating AI into their curriculum, the panel said.
However, MCCCD is developing an “Intro to Artificial Intelligence” half-day course. The initial target audience will be workforce education and training providers who can then impart the knowledge onto clients, students and dislocated workers.
“I think there’s a big point of education that needs to be done in that space,” said Board Member Jason Schaffner, who also attended the conference.
The workforce learning how to use AI tools will be key, Schaffner said, so employers know there is an option that is “not just kicking people to the curb,” but utilizing AI with their employees.
We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Mark Carlisle can be reached at mcarlisle@iniusa.org.
Mark Carlisle joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2017, covering Glendale. He has since moved to the Daily Independent team, primarily covering the city of Phoenix along with other topics affecting the Valley at-large.
Community: Mark enjoys taking his two young sons to parks, the Phoenix Zoo, the Phoenix Public Library and other fun events around the Valley. He also participates in a local book club.
Education: Chapman University with a BA in English Journalism and one in Screenwriting.
Random Fact: Mark worked at a tuxedo shop in college. Just don’t ask him to tie a bowtie.
Hobbies: Spending time with his wife, sons and dog, watching sports and TV shows, listening to audiobooks and occasionally writing fiction or designing a board game.
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