Why AI tools aren't creating more free time at work

Mint

4 hours ago

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In 1930, economist John Maynard Keynes optimistically predicted that humans of the future would need to work only 15 hours a week because, in the next 100 years, technology would have automated many tedious and time-consuming tasks. Nearly a century later, the fantasy of 3-hour work days hasn't come true, though many companies around the world are opting for 4-day work weeks thanks to improved efficiency in their operations due to automation. The flip side of this trend is, of course, a surge in layoffs as well as proportional reduction in the salaries of employees working shorter shifts to maximise the company's topline.
In 1930, economist John Maynard Keynes optimistically predicted that humans of the future would need to work only 15 hours a week because, in the next 100 years, technology would have automated many tedious and time-consuming tasks. Nearly a century later, the fantasy of 3-hour work days hasn't come true, though many companies around the world are opting for 4-day work weeks thanks to improved efficiency in their operations due to automation. The flip side of this trend is, of course, a surge in layoffs as well as proportional reduction in the salaries of employees working shorter shifts to maximise the company's topline.
Even where an artificial intelligence (AI) mandate is yet to be formally adopted at the organisation level, AI tools are being widely used by individuals to reduce the drudgery of their daily grind. For perspective, a recent report shows, India is the largest user of ChatGPT, surpassing the United States and Indonesia. Time that was once spent on executing repetitive tasks, like workflow management, has been freed up, allowing employees to focus more on strategic goals. The logical conclusion, based on these shifts, would be that AI's transformative hand is improving our work-life balance. If you have chunks of time freed up from your schedule, you would be most likely spending it with family or friends, or whatever activity gives you joy, right? Quite wrong, as it turns out. Also Read | Overcoming accent bias in the global workplace
The 2025 Work Trend Index Annual Report recently published by Microsoft shows, based on the company's telemetry data, that the notion of the 'infinite workday" continues to thrive all over the world. If you thought early risers were fiercely protective of their morning routine, that's not entirely true: 40% of people are online at 6am, checking their emails. On an average, employees receive 117 emails, which most skim in under a minute, and 157 messages on Teams, each day. That's not all.
Data showed 57% meetings were called without any prior intimation, and average time between interruptions by a meeting, mail or message during core work hours was 2 minutes. About half of these meetings were called between 9am-11am and 1 pm-3pm, which are peak productivity hours for most people, according to a wide range of research into circadian rhythm. Due to this fragmented focus through the day, along with attendant distractions on social media and the internet, the evenings organically fuse into the 'workday". And so, 29% people log back into their inbox by 10pm on weekdays, and around 20% actively work over the weekend. Work Without End
According to data tracked by scholars Wei Jiang, Junyoung Park, Rachel Xiao and Shen Zhang between 2004 and 2023, workers in AI-intensive occupations had more hours added to their work week relative to those in less AI-exposed jobs. In an article published on the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) website in March, they showed that an increase from the 25th to the 75th percentile in AI exposure added over 2 hours to the work week of employees.
So what explains this conundrum, especially in heavily AI-exposed jobs, which are supposed to increase efficiency and create more leisure time?
As the CEPR article argues, by increasing worker productivity, AI-exposed jobs ironically end up incentivising longer work hours. It's a case of market economics colluding with the innate human desire for more. As automation takes away the cognitive load of mundane labour, employers begin to set higher benchmarks of productivity for their employees. Individual goals are reset, the metrics of success are amped up, pushing workers to work ever longer hours to achieve their targets. Especially for those incentivised by productivity-linked pay, working longer becomes a way of making more money. And who wouldn't want to make some extra cash in the midst of this cost of living crisis? Also Read | Firing underperformers can boost your team's retention
The second fallout of the AI revolution in the workplace is the increased surveillance of workers. Bill Gates famously memorised the license plates of cars belonging to his employees to keep track of the time they came into, and left, work. Now all you need is an AI tool to monitor how your employees are spending their time, especially when they are working remotely or in a hybrid setting.
In many AI-intensive roles, employers are rolling out automated performance scores to provide real-time feedback to workers—not only on how well they are doing their tasks but also where they stand vis-à-vis their peers. It's back to school again except, instead of a human, you now have an intelligent machine hovering over you, rapping you on the knuckles, and making you feel miserable for being not as good as your classmates.
The outcry against the so-called AI apocalypse has largely focused on layoffs so far. But even for those who survive this tech revolution, there are ever new worries that lurk on the horizon. While technological strides may give them a spike in wealth in the short term, it won't do any good to their well-being in the future.
Work Vibes is a fortnightly column on ideas to help you thrive at what you do. Also Read | Instead of setting SMART goals, why not make a PACT? Topics You May Be Interested In