University graduates in the UK are facing the toughest job market since 2018 as employers pause hiring and use AI to cut costs, figures suggest.

The number of roles advertised for recent graduates is down 33% compared with last year and is at the lowest level in seven years, according to the job search site Indeed.

Overall job postings as of mid-June were 5% lower compared with the end of March, as the broader job market struggles in the face of higher taxes for employers and minimum wage changes introduced from April.

It means the UK is an outlier compared with the US and its peers in Europe, as it is the only economy with fewer job openings available than before the pandemic, according to the data. Jack Kennedy, a senior economist at Indeed, said the figures underlined a “continued gradual softening rather than a nosedive” in the labour market.

“Despite the UK labour market holding out overall, new entrants like graduates face a challenging time in securing a first rung on the ladder,” Kennedy said. “This signals a wider landscape of employers holding on to existing staff, while some observers contend that entry-level roles in professional occupations are particularly exposed to AI displacement.”

Share your experience

You can share your experience of AI and job-seeking using this form or by messaging us.

Your responses, which can be anonymous, are secure as the form is encrypted and only the Guardian has access to your contributions. We will only use the data you provide us for the purpose of the feature and we will delete any personal data when we no longer require it for this purpose. For true anonymity please use our SecureDrop service instead.

What has been your recent experience of the graduate job market?

Please include as much detail as possible.

If applicable, in what ways have you noticed AI is changing the landscape for graduate jobs? Optional

Please be as specific as possible.

For upcoming and recent graduates or parents, tell us more about the job-searching experience Optional

Please include as much detail as possible.

For employers, tell us more about how your recruitment or specific job roles have changed recently Optional

Please include as much detail as possible.

If you are happy to, please upload a photo of yourself here Optional

Please note, the maximum file size is 5.7 MB.

Choose file

Can we publish your response?

You can add more information here Optional

If you include other people’s names please ask them first.

Would you be interested in speaking to our audio and/or video teams?

By submitting your response, you are agreeing to share your details with us for this feature.

Submit

Show more

There are varying forecasts about the impact of AI on the labour market. Research from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has found the technology could disrupt “white-collar” professions such as lawyers, doctors and software engineers. The International Monetary Fund has estimated that 60% of jobs in advanced economies such as the US and UK are exposed to AI, and that half of these jobs may be negatively affected.

The Tony Blair Institute has said potential UK job losses in the private sector could be mitigated by AI creating new roles.

This month the technology secretary, Peter Kyle, called on workers and businesses to “act now” on getting to grips with AI, or risk being left behind.

skip past newsletter promotion

Sign up to Business Today

Get set for the working day – we’ll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning

Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

He said: “I think most people are approaching this with trepidation. Once they start [using AI], it turns to exhilaration, because it is a lot more straightforward than people realise, and it is far more rewarding than people expect.

“There’s no one in employment at the moment that is incapable of gaining the skills that will be needed in the economy in the next five years … That is the optimistic way of saying: act now, and you will thrive into the future. Don’t, and I think that some people will be left behind. And that’s what worries me the most.”