Senators seek Labor-led database on AI workforce impacts

Senators Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Ted Budd (R-N.C.) have introduced a bipartisan bill that would direct the Department of Labor to create a public database on the workforce impacts of artificial intelligence. The bill, whose full text has not yet been released, would require the department to compile and publish aggregated workforce transparency data regarding AI's effect on the U.S. workforce.

The legislation aims to provide policymakers, researchers, and the public with a centralized resource to understand how AI is changing employment patterns. The bill does not specify enforcement mechanisms or regulatory powers, focusing instead on data collection and transparency.

The bill comes amid growing bipartisan concern over AI's rapid deployment and its potential to disrupt labour markets. Similar data-gathering initiatives have been proposed in previous sessions but have not advanced to enactment. The current bill would require the Labor Department to determine the scope and frequency of reporting.