Sen. Banks Examines How AI is Reshaping America’s Workforce

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Yesterday, Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.), chairman of the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety, convened a hearing titled "The Impact of AI on the Workforce" to examine how artificial intelligence is changing the American workforce and what Congress must do to ensure that American workers benefit from the next generation of technological innovation. Witnesses agreed that AI is transforming the tasks people perform on the job more than replacing workers outright, while warning that changes to entry-level hiring and career pipelines require closer attention.

In his opening remarks, Chairman Banks (R-Ind.) emphasized that helping workers succeed in the AI economy begins with better information about how AI is changing jobs. He highlighted his bipartisan AI Workforce PREPARE Act, legislation to modernize federal labor data, improve AI workforce forecasting, and give policymakers, educators, and employers the tools they need to prepare workers for the jobs of the future.

"America will win the AI race with China by maximizing the capabilities of all our companies and all our workers."

Click here or above to watch the opening statement.

Sen. Banks noted that while some have predicted widespread job losses, the evidence so far points to a different reality: AI is changing how work is performed, creating new skill demands, and making it more important than ever to preserve the career pathways that help young Americans gain experience and advance in higher-paying jobs.

During the hearing, Sen. Banks questioned Indiana workforce and economic experts about how AI is changing jobs across the Hoosier State.

Click here or above to watch his line of questioning.

Ken Clark, President and CEO of EmployIndy, told Chairman Banks that AI's impact will differ across industries, with healthcare, logistics, transportation, and hospitality expected to see significant productivity gains. Clark also stressed that employers increasingly expect workers to have practical AI skills and that students should begin developing those skills through work-based learning before entering the workforce.

Sen. Banks also questioned Carol Rogers, Director of the Indiana Business Research Center at Indiana University, who explained that while the Midwest initially trailed behind coastal states in AI adoption and productivity gains, the region is now catching up - and in some Census Bureau measures surpassing states like California. Rogers stated that businesses need better information on how AI is being implemented, stronger governance standards, and improved data collection to understand which skills employers demand and how AI is changing work. Throughout the hearing, witnesses reinforced the need for better labor market data to better understand AI's effects on hiring, skills, and career mobility. They also testified that current evidence does not support claims of widespread unemployment but instead points to a labor market in which workers will increasingly need new skills as AI changes workplace tasks and responsibilities.

Click here or above to watch his closing statement.

Sen. Banks' AI Workforce PREPARE Act would improve federal workforce data collection by adding AI-specific questions to major labor surveys, establishing an AI Workforce Research Hub, improving collaboration between federal and state agencies, and helping policymakers better understand how AI is changing jobs so workers can be trained before disruption becomes displacement.

Read more on the hearing here.

Watch Fox News live-look-in to the hearing here.

Watch Nexstar's nationally syndicated local news coverage of the hearing here.

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