Most South Korean Workers Fear AI Will Deepen Inequality, Survey Finds

Gwanghwamun Station in Jongno District, Seoul, is crowded with commuters heading to work.

SEOUL, Jan. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — A large majority of South Korean workers say the rapid spread of artificial intelligence is likely to widen labor-market inequality and deepen wealth polarization, according to a new nationwide survey.

The poll, conducted in October 2025 by research firm Global Research on behalf of the labor advocacy group Workplace Abuse 119, found that 77.9 percent of respondents expressed concern that AI adoption would intensify economic disparities. The survey questioned 1,000 employed adults aged 19 and older across the country.

Nearly half of respondents, 48.2 percent, said they believe artificial intelligence will replace existing jobs. Anxiety was strongest among younger workers, with 58.1 percent of those in their 20s expecting job displacement, compared with 49.1 percent in their 30s and 43.2 percent among workers in their 50s.

Most participants viewed the impact as imminent rather than distant. About 36.3 percent said job displacement could occur within three to five years, while 41.1 percent expected it to take place over a longer horizon of five years or more.

Commuters hurry through the area around Gwanghwamun Station in central Seoul on their way to work. (Yonhap)

The findings point to strong public support for policy intervention. More than 83 percent of respondents said social safety nets should be strengthened to prepare for widening inequality, while 70 percent supported taxing companies that generate profits from AI technologies and redirecting those revenues for public use.

Labor experts said the results reflect growing unease about whether technological progress is being matched by adequate social protections.

“Predicting the negative effects of AI and automation on jobs — and establishing meaningful safeguards in advance — has become an urgent task,” said Lee Jin-ah, a labor attorney with Workplace Abuse 119.

As South Korea accelerates its push to expand artificial intelligence across industries, the survey underscores mounting pressure on policymakers to balance innovation with protections for workers in an increasingly automated economy.

Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)