By a local government worker and UNISON member
At the start of the year, as part of yet another government ‘relaunch,’ Keir Starmer announced his plans for the UK to become an artificial intelligence “powerhouse”that would, in turn, spark a “decade of national renewal”.
Starmer’s grandiose plans involve a £14bn investment into AI, but where is this going to come from, given the UK’s declining economy? In 2024, Britain’s economy was 22% smaller than it would have been if the pre-2008 trend had continued. But fundamental to the problems is that there is an ongoing and historic lack of investment by the British capitalist class.
Similar to the government’s plans to grow the economy, the chances of the UK becoming an AI powerhouse are slim. But even if Starmer’s promise of investment is realised, it is a drop in the ocean compared to the colossal amount of capital already invested by the US. Meanwhile, China has plans to invest 100 times the amount of the UK over the next few years. We’re already years behind in the AI ‘arms race.’
According to Starmer, the ‘AI revolution’ will improve workers’ lives and also create thousands of new jobs, but a survey in October last year revealed that 77% of workers say that AI has decreased their productivity and added to their workload. The same survey revealed that 61% of workers believe that AI at work increases stress and their chances of experiencing burnout. So much for making our lives better!
AI under capitalism: cuts and redundancies
The real impact of AI under the capitalist system will be that it’s used to justify pay cuts and redundancies. As capitalism has developed historically, new technology and automation has enabled the replacement of manual jobs with machines. And one of the main reasons for the bosses’ investment into technologies such as AI is to squeeze out more surplus value from their workforce and therefore increase profit.
Despite all the weaknesses of the UK economy, AI is already playing a role in a number of workplaces and has the potential to play a much greater role in the public sector, in particular. I recently had my first encounter with AI in the council planning department that I work in, with the imminent introduction of a new records and database system which, according to the software developers, has AI technology that will “improve efficiency and decision- making by leveraging data analysis and intelligent workflows”.
Basically, whenever a planning application is submitted, it needs to have the correct forms, fee, drawings, supporting information, etc. That work is currently done by a team of people in our department – which is the same in every other planning department up and down the country. Austerity-driven councils, therefore, will likely be champing at the bit to roll out AI technology in order to cut yet more of our jobs.
However, AI is far from perfect and makes mistakes, so there will always need to be oversight by workers whenever it is used. In planning, where we are issuing legal decisions that can be challenged and appealed, any mistake can be very expensive.
There will always need to be a sign-off by a worker before final decisions are issued. In practice, despite what the bosses might believe, AI and automation is unlikely to reduce workloads or improve the services we deliver. And that’s not to mention the huge amount of energy and water used to maintain AI and data centres, which is already having a catastrophic impact on the environment.
Class struggle and AI
The struggle over new technologies such as AI is part of the class struggle, with workers fighting to defend their jobs, pay and conditions, as opposed to the bosses who want to use it to maximise their profits. We must be making demands in our trade unions for workers’ control over the use of AI in the workplace and to ensure that it is not used to deskill and sack workers, but instead use it to reduce workload and the working week, with no loss of pay.
As socialists, we are not opposed to new technology and it is true to say that AI could revolutionise certain industries and services, such as in health care. However, this is ultimately not possible under capitalism. That is why we argue for a democratically planned society, based on public ownership of the economy that would be able to harness new technology in a different way. An economic system based on what the vast majority of us need, rather than profits for the minority, exploitation and oppression.
