{"slug": "we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert", "title": "We must tax robots to protect humans from AI taking their jobs, employment expert James Reed says", "summary": "Employment expert James Reed, chairman of recruitment firm Reed, has called for a tax on robots and AI systems to protect human jobs and ensure fair taxation as automation increases. Reed argues that companies using AI should pay taxes, while critics warn a robot tax could stifle innovation.", "body_md": "# We must tax robots to protect humans from AI taking their jobs, employment expert James Reed says\n\n‘Back humans, tax robots’ says head of recruitment firm as he joins growing calls to get ahead of artificial intelligence’s effect on work\n\n- Bookmark\n- CommentsGo to comments\n\nWe should “back humans” and “tax robots” to help with the potentially dramatic changes being brought by [AI](/topic/ai), according to an employment expert.\n\nArtificial intelligence is already bringing dramatic changes to the world of work and legislators must respond by ensuring that those companies that rely on both physical robots and chatbots are paying their fair share, said Jamie Reed, chairman and chief executive of Reed.\n\n“The provision of those [AI] services is consuming huge amounts of energy and contributing to climate change,” he told the BBC. “And yet we're taxing employers who hire young people to pick up beer glasses in gardens.\n\n“And not robots that people are spending more and more money on tokens to use their services.”\n\nHe is one of a growing number of employment experts and others who have called on governments to ensure that technology companies and others are taxed for the work of automated systems. That would help ensure the tax system remains fair and continues to generate revenue even as automation takes over, as well as protecting human workers from having their jobs replaced, the idea’s supporters ave suggested.\n\nCritics argue that a robot tax could limit the development of new technology, by discouraging companies from adopting it. But studies have suggested that might not be the case in practice, and that it would nonetheless help ensure that AI is not adopted too quickly or destructively.\n\n\"I'm worried that we might end up with AI at its zenith in a world where we all live forever and we have nothing to do,” Mr Reed told the BBC’s Big Boss Interview.\n\nHe suggested that artificial intelligence was already having drastic effects in recruitment, including by dramatically increasing the number of people applying for each job. Applications with spelling mistakes are now “positively sought after” because they show that a real person was actually writing them, he suggested.\n\n\"My mantra is back humans, tax robots,” Mr Reed told the BBC. “We will all be and are so dependent on technology that the robots will be the things that are generating the wealth. And if you look at the history of taxation, taxation follows wealth.”\n\n## Join our commenting forum\n\nJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies\n\n[Comments](#comments-area)", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert", "canonical_source": "https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/ai-jobs-james-reed-artificial-intelligence-recruitment-b3002922.html", "published_at": "2026-06-25 11:59:37+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-06-25 12:21:50.288936+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-policy", "ai-ethics", "ai-safety", "robotics"], "entities": ["James Reed", "Reed", "BBC"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/we-must-tax-robots-to-protect-humans-from-ai-taking-their-jobs-employment-expert.jsonld"}}