Artificial intelligence is changing the way people work across the UK. From customer service and administration to data processing and software development, AI tools are increasingly being used to complete tasks that were once handled entirely by people.

For experienced professionals, AI may become another tool that helps them work faster. But for young people and those looking for their first job, the situation could be more challenging.

A growing concern is that AI and automation may reduce the number of entry-level opportunities available to people who need a first step into the workplace.

Research cited by The Guardian suggested that up to 3 million lower-skilled jobs in the UK could disappear by 2035 as automation and artificial intelligence reshape the labour market. Jobs involving administrative work, machine operations and some trades were identified as being among those facing greater pressure.

That does not necessarily mean millions of people will suddenly lose their jobs to robots. The reality is likely to be more gradual. Some jobs may disappear, some may change significantly, and entirely new roles may emerge.

However, one question is becoming increasingly important for young people:

If AI can perform many basic workplace tasks, which entry-level jobs could become harder to find?

Why Entry-Level Jobs Could Be More Vulnerable to AI

Traditionally, entry-level jobs have allowed people to gain practical experience while performing relatively routine tasks.

A new employee might begin by:

• Entering information into spreadsheets
• Answering basic customer questions
• Sorting documents
• Scheduling appointments
• Preparing simple reports
• Conducting basic research
• Processing forms
• Responding to emails
• Managing routine administrative work

These tasks help young workers understand how a business operates and gradually develop professional skills.

However, many of these activities can now be supported or partly completed by AI software.

For example, an AI system can summarise documents, draft emails, analyse information, answer common customer questions and organise large amounts of data within seconds.

This creates a major challenge for employers and job seekers.

If technology can complete some basic tasks, businesses may decide they need fewer junior employees to perform them.

Recent research has also highlighted growing pressure on entry-level employment. A 2026 survey reported that more than one-third of UK employers had reduced entry-level opportunities for younger workers, with AI and automation among the factors contributing to the changing employment environment.

1. Administrative and Office Assistant Jobs

Administrative jobs could face some of the biggest changes.

Many entry-level office positions involve repetitive tasks such as:

• Data entry
• Managing calendars
• Organising documents
• Preparing basic reports
• Updating databases
• Responding to routine emails
• Scheduling meetings

AI tools can already assist with many of these activities.

For example, modern workplace software can automatically schedule meetings, summarise discussions, organise documents and generate first drafts of reports.

This does not mean administrative professionals will disappear completely. Businesses will still need people who can make decisions, communicate with colleagues and handle unusual situations.

However, the number of people required for routine administrative work could decline.

Government-backed labour market projections also suggest that administrative and secretarial occupations may decline over the coming years, although replacement demand means job openings can still arise as existing workers retire or leave the workforce.

2. Customer Service and Call Centre Roles

Customer service has traditionally been a major source of employment for young and inexperienced workers.

Many people begin their careers by working in:

• Call centres
• Online customer support
• Retail support teams
• Help desks
• Live chat services

AI-powered chatbots are now capable of answering a growing number of basic customer questions.

They can provide information about:

• Orders
• Delivery times
• Opening hours
• Refund policies
• Account information
• Basic troubleshooting

As these systems improve, companies may need fewer people to answer simple and repetitive queries.

However, human customer service workers are still likely to be important when customers have complicated problems, emotional concerns or unusual situations.

The role may therefore change rather than disappear entirely.

Future customer service workers may spend less time answering simple questions and more time dealing with complicated cases that require judgement, patience and human communication.

3. Data Entry Jobs

Data entry is another area that could face significant automation.

Traditional data entry work often involves moving information from one system to another.

AI and automation software can increasingly:

• Extract information from documents
• Read invoices
• Process forms
• Organise data
• Identify missing information
• Update databases

This means businesses may require fewer employees to perform purely manual data entry.

For young people, this is important because data entry has historically been one of the easier office jobs to enter without extensive experience.

As automation expands, employers may increasingly expect entry-level workers to have additional skills such as data analysis, spreadsheet knowledge and familiarity with AI tools.

4. Basic Content and Digital Marketing Roles

Artificial intelligence is also changing entry-level opportunities in marketing and content creation.

AI tools can now help businesses:

• Write social media captions
• Generate basic articles
• Create advertising copy
• Suggest keywords
• Produce images
• Analyse campaign performance

This could reduce the need for people whose work mainly involves producing simple, repetitive content.

However, marketing is unlikely to become completely automated.

Businesses still need people who understand:

• Customers
• Brand identity
• Culture
• Creativity
• Strategy
• Market trends
• Human behaviour

The bigger change may be in the skills employers expect.

Instead of hiring someone simply to write basic social media posts, companies may increasingly look for junior marketers who can use AI tools while also bringing strategic and creative thinking to their work.

5. Basic Accounting and Bookkeeping Work

Some entry-level financial tasks are also becoming increasingly automated.

Software can already help with:

• Invoice processing
• Expense tracking
• Basic bookkeeping
• Financial reporting
• Data reconciliation

AI could make these processes faster and reduce the amount of manual work required.

However, accounting professionals do much more than enter numbers into a system.

Human workers are still needed to:

• Interpret financial information
• Provide advice
• Check complex transactions
• Understand regulations
• Make professional judgements

The risk is therefore likely to be greater for routine financial tasks than for highly skilled accounting and financial roles.

6. Junior Research and Information Processing Roles

AI can process large amounts of information extremely quickly.

A worker who previously spent hours reading documents, summarising reports or collecting information may now be able to complete part of that work using AI.

This could affect some junior roles involving:

• Basic research
• Document analysis
• Information gathering
• Report preparation
• Market research

However, there is an important limitation.

AI can provide information, but people still need to check whether that information is accurate.

Human judgement remains important when evaluating sources, understanding context and making decisions based on research.

This means young workers who develop strong critical thinking skills could become increasingly valuable.

7. Retail Jobs With Routine Tasks

Retail is also changing as businesses introduce:

• Self-checkout systems
• Automated inventory management
• AI-powered customer support
• Digital ordering systems

Some routine retail jobs could become less common as companies adopt more technology.

However, physical retail is unlikely to become completely automated.

Customers may still value human assistance, particularly when buying expensive products or dealing with complicated purchases.

Retail workers who can provide product knowledge and strong customer service may have better long-term opportunities than those whose roles involve only routine transactions.

8. Basic Manufacturing and Machine Operation Jobs

The Guardian article highlighted machine operation roles as among the areas facing significant pressure from automation and AI-driven technological change.

Factories and industrial workplaces have been using automation for many years.

AI could further increase the use of:

• Automated production systems
• Robotics
• Predictive maintenance
• Quality control technology

Some routine roles may decline as machines become capable of performing more tasks independently.

At the same time, new opportunities could grow for workers who can operate, maintain and manage advanced technology.

The future manufacturing worker may therefore need stronger technical skills than in the past.

Are All Entry-Level Jobs at Risk?

No.

It would be inaccurate to suggest that AI will simply remove all entry-level jobs.

The UK labour market is expected to continue creating jobs, but growth may not be evenly spread across occupations.

Government-supported projections indicate that much of the UK’s expected employment growth through 2035 could be concentrated in skilled, white-collar and professional occupations. At the same time, some administrative, skilled trades and mid-level occupations could see declines in overall employment numbers.

The important difference is that the type of entry-level job may change.

Young workers may find fewer opportunities based purely on routine tasks and more opportunities where they are expected to work alongside technology.

Jobs That May Be Safer From AI

Jobs involving strong human interaction, physical activity or complex judgement may be more difficult to automate completely.

Examples include roles involving:

• Healthcare
• Skilled trades
• Personal care
• Teaching
• Engineering
• Management
• Complex sales
• Technical maintenance

This does not mean these professions will avoid AI.

AI is likely to change almost every industry.

But in many cases, technology may support workers rather than completely replace them.

For example, a healthcare professional may use AI to analyse information more quickly while continuing to make important decisions and communicate with patients.

Similarly, a skilled tradesperson may use advanced software but still need to perform physical work that requires experience and judgement.

The Biggest Challenge: Losing the First Step on the Career Ladder

Perhaps the biggest concern is not that every young worker will lose their job.

The bigger problem could be that there are fewer opportunities to get started.

Traditionally, junior workers learn through experience.

They begin by performing basic tasks and gradually move into more advanced roles.

But if AI performs many of those basic tasks, employers could ask an important question:

How will young workers gain experience if businesses no longer hire them to do entry-level work?

This could create a difficult cycle.

Employers want experienced workers.

Young people need jobs to gain experience.

But the jobs that once provided that experience may become less common.

This is why the changing entry-level job market could become one of the most important employment issues facing the UK over the next decade.

AI Is Also Creating New Opportunities

There is another side to the story.

Artificial intelligence is not only changing existing jobs. It is also creating demand for new skills and occupations.

Government research projects that the number of jobs directly involving AI activities could grow significantly by 2035, while AI-related occupations could expand across a much larger part of the economy.

More recent UK labour market data also shows growing demand for AI skills. PwC reported in 2026 that specialist AI job postings had increased sharply, while workers with AI skills were seeing a growing wage premium.

This suggests that the future job market may not simply be about humans competing against AI.

Increasingly, it could be about workers who know how to use AI competing with workers who do not.

What Skills Should Young Workers Focus On?

Young people entering the UK job market may benefit from developing skills that work alongside AI rather than competing directly with it.

Some useful areas include:

AI Literacy

Understanding how AI tools work and how to use them responsibly could become increasingly valuable.

Workers do not necessarily need to become AI engineers.

But they may need to understand how to use AI tools effectively in their profession.

Communication

Strong communication remains difficult to replace.

Workers who can explain ideas clearly, work with teams and understand customers may continue to have an advantage.

Critical Thinking

AI can produce answers quickly.

But humans are needed to question those answers.

The ability to identify mistakes, evaluate information and make sensible decisions could become increasingly important.

Problem-Solving

Routine work may become more automated.

As a result, human workers could increasingly focus on solving unusual and complicated problems.

Technical Skills

Basic knowledge of digital tools, data and technology could become useful across many industries.

Adaptability

Perhaps the most important skill will be the ability to adapt.

Workers entering the job market today may change careers several times during their working lives.

The ability to learn new skills could become more valuable than relying on a single skill for decades.

What Does This Mean for the Future of UK Jobs?

AI is unlikely to produce a simple future where machines replace everyone.

Instead, the UK job market could become more divided.

Some routine jobs may shrink.

Some jobs may change.

Some completely new roles may appear.

The challenge for young workers will be ensuring they have the skills needed for the new opportunities.

For employers and the government, the challenge will be ensuring that young people still have a clear path into the workplace.

Without entry-level opportunities, the long-term impact could extend far beyond today’s job market.

Every industry needs future managers, specialists and experienced professionals.

Those people usually begin somewhere.

If technology removes too many of the traditional starting points, the UK may need to rethink how young people gain workplace experience.

Final Thoughts

Artificial intelligence could reshape millions of jobs in the UK over the coming decade.

Entry-level positions involving routine administrative work, customer service, data processing and other repetitive tasks may face some of the biggest changes.

However, this does not mean there will be no jobs for young people.

The nature of those jobs is changing.

The workers who are likely to have the strongest opportunities may be those who combine technology skills with abilities that remain deeply human: communication, judgement, creativity, problem-solving and adaptability.

For anyone entering the UK job market, the message is clear.

AI should not simply be viewed as a threat.

It should also be viewed as a major change in the way careers begin.

The challenge now is to prepare for a workplace where knowing how to work with artificial intelligence may become just as important as knowing how to work without it.