The Debate We Are Not Having: Europe’s Blind Spot on the Future of Work

22-02-2026 With the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and particularly AI agents capable of autonomously performing complex tasks, questions about the future of work are no longer theoretical. Across Europe and beyond, policymakers, businesses, and workers are asking: what will AI mean for jobs? how fast will change happen? and are we sufficiently prepared?

These were some of the central themes of the latest edition of Considerati’s EU Insights Lab series, “AI, Europe and the Future of Work,” in which Anamaria Corca, Director of EU Public Affairs at Considerati, sat down with David Timis, Senior Fellow in AI Governance at the Global Governance Institute, to unpack emerging trends and discuss how Europe should respond.

The US Debate Is Already Moving

The boom in AI has triggered early signals in the United States: companies slowing hiring, freezing entry-level recruitment, and in some cases downsizing – particularly in the tech sector. While not all of this is solely AI-driven, according to Timis AI is part of the equation. He points to structural differences between the US and Europe:

“[The US has] less strong employment legislation. So now, if you're a company in the US and you want to take your time hiring, so reducing, or kind of keeping headcount as is or even firing people, it’s much easier to do so.”

Timis notes that many US companies are experimenting with AI deployment and adjusting their workforce strategies accordingly:

“Many of these companies are exploring how to deploy AI more effectively and they’re pausing their hiring or again, in some cases, downsizing.”

As a result, American policymakers are already deeply engaged in debates about AI’s economic impact. Figures such as Bernie Sanders and Andrew Yang have openly discussed AI taxation, reskilling programmes and universal basic income.

In the EU, however, these conversations remain more cautious according to Timis:

“These are topics that in Brussels remain either not yet that popular or maybe even taboo to some degree, which shouldn’t be the case, because what happens in the US, for the good or bad, will eventually reach our shores as well.”

A Critical 3–5 Year Window

While policy discussions in Europe are picking up slowly, the coming years are decisive for the impact on the labour market. Timis sees the next 3 to 5 years as crucial with two potential scenarios emerging. The first is one where AI enhances resilience but does not fundamentally disrupt labour markets. The second scenario could be one of a very transformative process resulting from AI.

Therefore, Timis warns not to ignore the issue:

“Not even having such conversations puts us – in the case of a more, let’s say, risky scenario of AI being even more disruptive for labor markets –  in a position in which people might be very, very upset and policymakers being caught off guard by the fact that they haven’t had maybe such conversations earlier.”

Europe’s Hidden Advantage

However, David Timis doesn’t just sound the alarm but also has words of encouragement for Europe. While we trail the US and China in areas such as semiconductor production and access to cheap energy, Timis argues the EU holds an underappreciated strength: public trust.

“Between the US and Europe we have the upper hand on the level of trust per citizen in this technology.”

For Timis this presents an opportunity for policymakers and companies that they should capitalise on:

“We should as both companies in Europe but also institutions nudge faster application and deployment, obviously by doing the due diligence, by applying guardrails, training the workers to use these tools effectively and ethically, but pushing a bit on the, as they call it now Apply AI, on actually applying it, because we have what it takes to do so.”

AI as A Cross-Sector Political Priority

AI has in the last years rapidly moved from the niches beyond tech and is touching nowadays on many other areas such as housing, climate policy, and labour markets. Therefore, Timis has a crucial advice to policymakers:

“I would personally love to have by the end of the decade more policymakers both in Brussels and in member states taking AI as one one of their top three priorities on their agenda when they start their new mandates, because it’s what people care about.”

Ignoring the issue, he argues, is a political miscalculation:

“If you’re a policymaker today in Europe and you don’t touch upon AI at all, you’re missing out on a big part of the population who’s thinking about this, who is waking up at night because of this in some cases, because there are genuinely people who are concerned.”

Importantly, he stresses that discussion itself is the first step. While not pushing any particular view, Timis argues that policymakers must engage to shape their own narratives, raise awareness and make up their minds on the issues that are being raised around AI.

Brussels Is Beginning to Respond

European institutions are slowly waking up to the implications of AI in the workplace.

In November, the European Parliament called in a legislative initiative report on the European Commission to introduce new rules safeguarding workers from the risks of algorithmic management in the workplace.[1]

MEPs stressed that recruitment, dismissal, remuneration and disciplinary actions must never be based solely on automated systems. They demanded mandatory human oversight, transparency about data collection, and a ban on processing sensitive data such as emotional status or private conversations.

Meanwhile, the Commission’s Quality Jobs Roadmap acknowledges that AI is becoming central to working life.[2] While digital tools can increase productivity, the Commission notes that 84% of Europeans believe these technologies must be carefully managed at work. A forthcoming Quality Jobs Act is expected to further address these issues.

The Bottom Line: The Conversation Cannot Wait

As the conversation with David Timis has shown: AI’s impact on work is no longer speculative.

Therefore, Europe faces a strategic choice: engage early, invest in resilience, capitalise on AI’s potential and shape the transition or risk being caught off guard.

As Timis’ warning makes clear, the time for cautious distance may be over. Europe has to face the opportunities and risks that AI already holds on the future of work. The next five years could determine whether Europe leads responsibly in the age of AI or once again misses out and joins the discussion too late.

[1] https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20251211IPR32175/meps-demand-new-measures-to-protect-against-algorithmic-management-at-work

[2] https://employment-social-affairs.ec.europa.eu/news/commission-sets-out-roadmap-future-proof-quality-jobs-competitive-eu-2025-12-04_en