McKinsey study finds AI will add jobs but 11 million U.S. workers need retraining
McKinsey research projects more U.S. jobs by 2035, yet about 11 million workers will have to shift occupations and acquire new credentials.
McKinsey’s latest forecast indicates the U.S. economy will host more jobs in 2035 than today, but the mix will shift, requiring large-scale retraining. About 11 million Americans may have to leave declining occupations, with an average of 770,000 workers annually moving to entirely new occupational groups—far above past trends. The study uses cases like administrative assistants, whose tasks already align with 58 % of project-manager duties, yet most project-manager roles demand a bachelor’s degree and professional certification.
Similar transitions, such as dishwashers to home-health aides or packagers to production-fabrication roles, face skill gaps and credential hurdles. Since 85 % of growing jobs require some credential, and many of those are employer-driven rather than legally mandated, the report calls for streamlined licensing, modular qualifications, and employer-led apprenticeship pathways to ease the shift.
Why it matters
Understanding the scale of retraining needed helps workers, employers, and policymakers plan for a changing job market.
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