NEWS: Sanders Releases Report on Big Tech Oligarchs’ War Against Workers, Warns AI Could Eliminate Nearly 100 Million U.S. Jobs

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today released a sweeping report warning that artificial intelligence (AI) and automation could eliminate nearly 100 million American jobs over the next decade — while billionaires and corporate executives reap record profits. Sanders also published an op-ed in Fox News this morning elaborating his concerns and sharing ideas about how to ensure new technologies benefit every American, not just a handful of billionaires.

“The same handful of oligarchs who have rigged our economy for decades — Elon Musk, Larry Ellison, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and others — are now moving as fast as they can to replace human workers with what they call ‘artificial labor,’” Sanders said. “If we do not act, the result could be economic devastation for working people across this country.”

The report, The Big Tech Oligarchs’ War Against Workers, finds:

• AI could replace up to 97 million jobs in 10 years. According to a ChatGPT-based model, 89% of fast food and counter workers, 64% of accountants and 47% of truck drivers could lose their jobs.
• Corporations are already using AI to cut jobs. Amazon, Walmart, UnitedHealth Group, JPMorgan Chase and other companies are openly telling investors that AI will allow them to slash payrolls — even as they post tens of billions in profits and reward CEOs with pay packages of $25 million, $35 million or more.
• AI companies admit their goal is to lower labor costs. Firms like Salesforce and Artisan advertise digital labor platforms to “stop hiring humans.” Self-driving truck companies boast that their technology eliminates the “problem” of higher driver wages.
• Trump is making matters worse. The Trump administration has appointed AI executives to top policy roles, gutted labor protections and even fired tens of thousands of federal workers to pave the way for AI replacement. Trump’s policies encourage corporations to automate jobs while kneecapping unions and worker rights.

Sanders emphasized that the threat of artificial labor is not inevitable — it is a choice.

“Technology can and should improve the lives of working people,” Sanders continued. “But it will not happen if decisions are made in boardrooms by billionaires who only care about short-term profits. Congress must ensure that AI and automation benefit workers, not just corporate CEOs and Wall Street.”

The report outlines a series of policy proposals to make sure working families, not just billionaires, benefit from technological change. They include:

• A 32-hour workweek with no loss in pay
• Requiring corporations to share profits with workers and give them seats on boards
• Expanding employee ownership and creating a U.S. Employee Ownership Bank
• A “robot tax” on corporations that replace workers with machines
• More than doubling union membership by passing the PRO Act and ending union busting
• Guaranteeing paid family and medical leave
• Restoring defined benefit pensions
• Banning corporate stock buybacks

“Working people built this country,” Sanders concluded. “They deserve to benefit from new technology, not be thrown out on the street while billionaires get even richer. We must stand up to the greed of Big Tech and make sure the future of artificial intelligence is a future that works for all of us — not just the people on top.”

Read the full report, The Big Tech Oligarchs’ War Against Workers: AI and Automation Could Destroy Nearly 100 Million U.S. Jobs in a Decade, here.