AI in France: Youth Employment Plummets

A Disruption in Employment with the Rise of AI

On March 24, 2026, Insee published an economic note written by Raphaële Adjerad and Gaston Vermersch, revealing a 3% decline in salaried employment in IT and information services in France between the end of 2023 and the end of 2025. This decline is particularly pronounced among those aged 15-29, contributing to a drop of 3.8 points, while the 30-54 age group sees their contribution increase by 1.4 points. This trend, also observed in the United States, indicates that the labor market's adjustment to AI is resulting in a decrease in hiring for entry-level positions rather than a widespread reduction in workforce numbers.

A striking figure from this study is the 7.4% drop in employment for those under 30 in IT in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the previous year, while the decline for all private salaried employment is only 0.7%. This reversal is all the more striking given that the sector's added value continues to grow, reaching 188 points above its 2000 value in the fourth quarter of 2025, compared to 131 points for employment. Companies are therefore producing more but with fewer employees, particularly fewer young entrants.

Fewer Hires, But No Increase in Layoffs

In this note, Insee specifies that the adjustment does not involve waves of layoffs but rather a slowdown in hiring for entry-level positions. Junior developers, junior analysts, and early-career consultants are the profiles most affected in this context. The Insee note confirms: “The mechanism primarily involves a slowdown in hiring rather than an increase in separations.”

In the United States, a study from the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, cited by Insee, estimates the relative decline in employment for those aged 22-25 in jobs most exposed to AI at around 16% since the advent of generative AI. The reason lies in the very nature of the tasks involved. According to several studies cited by Insee, entry-level tasks are the most automatable by generative AI: execution tasks, writing, data processing, or repetitive development. In contrast, AI appears to be more complementary to experienced profiles, who are capable of framing, managing, and validating the results generated by these tools.

Growing Sectors but Less Welcoming for Young People

Insee identifies several sectors "exposed a priori to AI in France," which continue to progress but are experiencing a marked decline in employment among those under 30. In IT and information services, employment for those aged 15-29 fell by 7.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025. The publishing sector recorded a decline of 5.8%, while management consulting and corporate headquarters activities saw a decrease of 3.7%.

Prospects for Future Digital Professionals

For students and recent graduates in IT or consulting, this economic note reflects a tightening job market at the entry level. Companies continue to hire experienced profiles but delegate part of the tasks that traditionally fell to juniors to AI. While the debate around AI potentially eliminating jobs in the long term remains open, future digital professionals must anticipate these changes now, starting from their training stage. Soft skills such as critical thinking, adaptability to these changes, and curiosity are human abilities sought by recruiters to manage and verify the work generated by AI tools. The goal: to enhance skills in AI usage while developing employability in a rapidly evolving market.