Artificial intelligence is changing how organisations allocate junior, administrative, analytical and preparatory work. Economic pressure is also reducing recruitment. These shifts do not mean that employment is disappearing, but they do make the early-career route less predictable.

The CIPD describes the danger as a ‘missing first rung’: entry-level pathways disappearing by default rather than by design. When people cannot gain an initial foothold, the consequences extend beyond the individual. Employers lose future capability, communities lose participation and the economy loses unrealised value.