The effects of artificial intelligence on the labor force in Maine are complicated, according to recent research from the Maine Department of Labor.
The study looked at tasks related to particular occupations and assessed whether ChatGPT or other comparable models could replace those duties.
Approximately two-thirds of Maine jobs are in fields where less than 40% of tasks could be influenced by AI, the study found.
According to Mark McInerney, director of the department’s Center for Workforce, Research, and Information, “that does a represent a large segment of our workforce in Maine today that are probably going to be minimally impacted or use tools like Chat GPT for a relatively limited amount of their typical work week.”
According to the survey, around 11% of jobs in Maine are in fields where at least 60% of the work may be impacted by AI.
Artificial intelligence has the potential to have the greatest influence on jobs in fields like computer science and office and administrative assistance. According to the report, these positions frequently rank among the highest paid in the state and call for some kind of post-secondary degree.
“The effects of AI will be more widely distributed throughout the state’s labor force, unlike the automation boom that primarily affected manufacturing jobs and factory hubs in Maine,” McInerney continued.
“Health care, legal, professional business services across the board these skillsets are important in many sectors,” he stated. “They are not necessarily jobs that are as concentrated either in specific sectors or in specific geographic areas of the state.”
Artificial intelligence may have less of an impact on jobs in trades that require physical work, such as construction, food service, and maintenance. According to McInerney, many of these positions are typically among the lowest paid in the state.
Despite the media’s heavy focus on AI, McInerney emphasizes that the new technology won’t replace employment and tasks in the state right away. Rather, forecasters predict that the effects will be noticed more gradually across the workforce in Maine.
