Only 22% of workers feel job-safe from AI—39K global survey reveals deep anxiety

For HR professionals, the data is a wake-up call: while unemployment is historically low, employee anxiety about AI is at an all-time high. This isn’t just a morale issue; it’s a talent retention and productivity risk. The 22% figure underscores how few workers trust their companies to protect them from technological disruption. HR departments must lead the charge in bridging the gap between AI implementation and workforce readiness.

The global workforce is in the grip of a profound anxiety crisis driven by artificial intelligence, and corporations appear to be doing shockingly little to prepare their employees for the upheaval. That is the stark conclusion of ADP Research’s Today at Work 2026 report, one of the largest workforce sentiment surveys ever conducted, which polled over 39,000 workers across 36 countries. The headline number is sobering: just 22% of workers worldwide strongly agreed that their job is safe from elimination—a figure that underscores how deeply technological disruption has eroded confidence even as unemployment rates remain historically low.

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That is the stark conclusion of ADP Research’s Today at Work 2026 report, one of the largest workforce sentiment surveys ever conducted, which polled over 39,000 workers across 36 countries.

This paradox—low unemployment paired with soaring job insecurity—lies at the heart of the report. Nela Richardson, ADP’s chief economist, noted during the survey briefing that “despite three years of historically low global unemployment and steady economic growth, our data reveals widespread job insecurity expressed by workers worldwide.” The anxiety is not speculative: a companion poll conducted by Ipsos in partnership with Epoch AI found that half of American adults used AI in the past week, and 20% of full-time workers say AI has already taken over parts of their job. In other words, the tsunami is not on the horizon—it is already crashing on the shore.

The implications for corporations are enormous. Worker anxiety about AI is no longer a fringe issue; it is a central business risk. When 78% of a global workforce does not strongly feel their job is safe, engagement, productivity, and retention are all at stake. Employees who fear for their future are less likely to invest in their current roles, less likely to trust their employers, and more likely to seek perceived shelter elsewhere. Yet the ADP data, along with the analysis in Fortune magazine by Nick Lichtenberg, paints a picture of a corporate world that has “failed to convince their workforce to welcome artificial intelligence with open arms.” The lack of transparent communication, reskilling programs, and genuine career-path planning leaves workers adrift in a sea of uncertainty.