By Aisha Down
Publication Date: 2025-11-25 00:01:00
Up to three million low-skilled jobs could disappear in the UK by 2035 due to automation and AI, according to a report by a leading education research charity.
According to the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), occupations such as skilled trades, machine operation and administrative work are most at risk.
Highly skilled professionals, on the other hand, are expected to be in greater demand as AI and technological advances increase workloads “at least in the short to medium term.” Overall, the report expects the UK economy to create 2.3 million jobs by 2035, although this will be unevenly distributed.
The findings contrast with other recent research that suggests AI will have a greater impact on high-skilled, technical jobs such as software engineering and management consulting than on skilled trades and manual labor.
King’s College research published in October estimated that “higher-paying companies” suffered job losses of about 9.4% between 2021 and 2025, with much of that period falling after…