The rapid spread of artificial intelligence (AI) in the labour market is affecting the junior and assistant positions that historically handled repetitive, administrative or basic analytical tasks. As those roles decline, early‑career professionals face growing difficulty finding positions where they can gain the experience and skills required for senior roles.
How much have opportunities fallen?
According to the Trenkwalder recruiter database, corporate partners have reduced their headcount needs by roughly 10% compared with a year earlier. At the same time, the number of applicants remains approximately at last year’s level. Available openings are increasingly concentrated in hospitality (horeca), logistics, hostess and office tasks, and light manual work rather than in production or manufacturing.
Pay and employer expectations: a widening gap
Several domestic surveys show a substantial gap between young people’s salary expectations and market offers; in engineering fields this discrepancy can reach 30–40%. Employers now prioritise hires with experience, strategic perspective and critical thinking, because algorithms perform many routine tasks faster and cheaper than humans.
Education and adaptation as the response
The article argues that the medium‑term solution is rapid adaptation of education and skills training: shifting focus from basic technical execution to complex problem‑solving, effective control of AI tools (for example, prompt engineering and system critique) and human competencies. Global tech firms increasingly evaluate applicants on skills rather than degrees, looking at AI‑tool use, English language ability, problem‑solving, collaboration, communication and learning agility — a skills index that often decides hiring outcomes.
Additional pressures in skilled trades
Skilled trades face long‑standing shortages: declining prestige of manual work and demographic trends have discouraged young people from enrolling. The gap has been worsened by migration of tradespeople to Western Europe and the United States. Although demand has pushed wages up in some areas, informal work and opaque billing practices keep these careers unattractive to many young people.
Reforming training and involving more companies
The authors stress that both higher education and vocational training must become more practice‑oriented and project‑based. Educational institutions race to keep up with technologies, but many lag five to ten years depending on market links. Dual‑training partner companies tend to cover narrow niches; consequently, schools should build broader industry networks rather than rely on a single employer. The traditional master‑apprentice system has largely vanished, even though employers report that fresh graduates typically require employer‑led on‑the‑job training.
What can early‑career workers do?
The article highlights continuous learning as the key competency today: fast retraining, adaptability and effective collaboration with AI tools. Young people should combine internships with skill development that remains valuable in automated environments.
Conference mention and conclusion
The piece notes the Portfolio AI & Digital Transformation conference scheduled for November 26, which will address the business impacts of digital transformation. In sum, AI’s expansion is narrowing entry points into the labour market in the short term; responding requires faster, market‑linked educational changes and broader corporate participation to preserve pathways for career development.
