Why Women Could Be Hit Hardest by the AI Job Revolution

History shows automation often affects women's jobs first. Here's what telephone operators and washing machines teach us about AI.

Long before Siri or ChatGPT, there was a real person — almost always a woman — connecting phone calls by hand. She was the telephone switch operator, once one of the biggest jobs for young American women. Today, that job no longer exists.

Now, a new wave of technology called AI (artificial intelligence — computer systems that can perform tasks that normally need human thinking) is changing the workforce again. And history suggests women may be most affected.

Why women face greater risk

AI is especially good at routine tasks, numbers, and spotting patterns — the kind of work found in clerical and administrative jobs, which are mostly held by women.

About 90% of secretaries and clerical workers are women
The International Labour Organization found nearly 1 in 10 women in wealthy countries works in jobs at the highest risk from AI

A lesson from the past

In the 1940s, 95% of US telephone operators were women. When AT&T introduced automatic switches, roughly 75,000 operator jobs vanished. Economists found many of these women ended up in lower-paying work or left the workforce entirely.

The reason: most people are already in their best-paying job. When that job disappears, the next option is often a step down.

But there's good news too

Researchers discovered that the next generation of women adapted well, finding new jobs of similar quality. Technology also created new opportunities:

Washing machines (called "engines of liberation") freed up time, letting more women enter paid work
From 1950 to 1980, employed women in the US grew by more than 25 million
Women's labor force participation (the share working or looking for work) rose from 34% to 52%

As businesses grew, they needed more office and clerical workers — jobs often filled by women with a high school education.

The bottom line

History shows that while old jobs disappear, new ones usually emerge over time. The big question for the AI era is whether the economy can create enough new opportunities — and how quickly workers, especially women, can make the shift.

This is an AI-generated summary. Read the original article at: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/19/ai-job-losses-women-automation-risk.html