American workers overwhelmingly back union-backed safeguards on artificial intelligence in the workplace, with labor protections receiving support from at least three-quarters of those surveyed across nearly every proposed policy area, according to a new poll released by the AFL-CIO.
The survey of 1,588 workers conducted between mid-April found that 95% support requiring a human to make final decisions on matters affecting individual jobs and employment. Another 92% want strong guardrails against harmful AI uses in the workplace, including demands for transparency and accountability when employers deploy the technology.
Support for union expansion to help workers defend against AI displacement reached 75%, the lowest level among all policies tested, yet still commanding three-quarters backing.
More striking than the policy support was workers' assessment of who could be trusted to protect them. When asked whether Democrats, Republicans, labor unions, or employers were most trustworthy on AI worker protection, 38% chose labor unions. Democrats came in second at 17%, Republicans third at 10%, and employers last at 6%. Another 18% said none of the options were trustworthy.
The gap reflects the real stakes workers see in AI implementation. While 78% said some action to protect workers from AI harms is extremely or very important, the reality on the ground tells a different story: only 7% said their employers disclosed how and when AI monitors their work. Seven in 10 workers reported no such disclosure, and nearly a quarter were uncertain.
Despite the silence, 94% of workers believe they should be informed if their employer uses AI to monitor their activities.
The polling arrives as unions have begun securing AI protections through collective bargaining agreements. The Ziff Davis Creators Guild won editorial integrity protections and transparency requirements in their 2024 contract, including guarantees against layoffs tied to AI implementation. National Nurses United secured similar language preventing new technology from being deployed in patient care without union approval.
Hannah Drummond, a registered nurse in North Carolina and union member, highlighted the stakes in healthcare. "We have technology language that says no new technology at all can be implemented that affects the delivery of patient care without going through the union first," she said. "AI is being used in hospitals without patients' consent. This violates the heart of health care."
Anna Iovine, unit chair of the Ziff Davis Creators Guild, underscored why workers are pushing back. "It's the latest way that companies can lay people off, reduce their workforce and cut corners by saying, 'oh, well, we'll just have AI do it,' even if the results are bad."
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler framed the results as a mandate. "The vast majority of America's workers agree on how to move forward on AI and who they trust to do it, and it's not Democrats, Republicans, Big Tech, or their employers," she said in a statement.
Author James Rodriguez: "The gap between what workers want, what employers are actually doing, and who workers believe can enforce protections is the real story here, and it explains why unions are gaining leverage they haven't had in years."
Comments