Top economists and Jerome Powell agree that Gen Z's hiring nightmare is real-and it's not about AI eating entry-level jobs | Fortune

"For many Gen Z workers, the struggle to land a job can feel isolating and fuel self-doubt. But that frustration recently got some high-level validation: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell echoed economists' concerns about the cooling labor market, telling reporters at his regular press conference following the Federal Open Market Committee that it's an "interesting labor market" right now, adding that "kids coming out of college and younger people, minorities, are having a hard time finding jobs." Noting a low job finding rate, along with a low redundancy rate, he said, "you've got a low firing, low hiring environment.""

"While recent months have been dubbed by Deutsche Bank " the summer AI turned ugly," and some major studies find AI adoption disrupting some entry-level roles, Powell was less sure. AI "may be part of the story," but he insisted the main drivers are a broadly slowed economy and hiring restraint. Top economists at Goldman Sachs and UBS tackled the subject soon after and found Powell to be mostly on the money. This isn't an AI story, at least not yet."

"According to a Friday analysis by UBS chief economist Paul Donovan, titled " the kids are alright? " the spike in U.S. youth unemployment stands in stark contrast to global trends and cannot be blamed on artificial intelligence despite the current fascination with automation in public debate. "The U.S. labor market experience is peculiar,""

U.S. unemployment among Americans under 25 rose dramatically in 2025, especially among recent graduates. Labor market indicators show low job finding rates and low redundancy rates, producing a 'no hire, no fire' environment. Young jobseekers and minorities face disproportionate difficulty breaking into the workforce as employers restrain hiring. Although AI adoption disrupted some entry-level roles and attracted public attention, prevailing analysis attributes the spike mainly to a broadly slowed economy and hiring restraint. Comparative data show the U.S. pattern contrasts with global trends, indicating a uniquely American labor-market problem.

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