It's harder for white-collar workers to find a -2-

There are more recent examples of AI discrimination in hiring, as well. One 2023 paper from researchers at Penn State University found that many AI models used by companies to analyze text demonstrated a bias against people with disabilities - with the algorithms tending to characterize sentences with disability-related terms as negative.

A lack of transparency between companies and workers compounds the discriminatory implications of AI, Akselrod said.

"Workers often have no idea that an AI tool is being used, let alone how it works or that it might be discriminating against them," she said.

Though the growing use of AI in the job market does raise concerns about employment discrimination, there's a different reason that companies might want to view the technology with skepticism: Often, the tools just aren't all that effective, said Schellman, the NYU professor.

"A lot of the technology I looked at - they don't often work as promised," she said.

Many managers are aware that the tools aren't perfect. Schellmann pointed to the Harvard Business School survey, which also found that nearly 90% of employers believe their automated hiring systems pass over qualified candidates.

The 29-year-old job seeker in Nevada said her job search feels a bit like proof of that fact, though it had an unusual ending. After searching for nearly a year, she landed a part-time freelance role helping train and modify different AI tools.

Though she'd still like a full-time job, she enjoys the work and finds the technology's capabilities fascinating. But she has her doubts about whether it should be used to help decide who gets a job.

"It has a place, but maybe not the place it has right now," she said. "If these tools are creating situations where good candidates are getting ruled out, what's the actual function?"

-Hannah Erin Lang

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10-04-24 0945ET

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