U.S. employers are recalibrating workforce strategies as they adapt to surging artificial intelligence (AI) use and shifting priorities of the Trump administration. New research from Littler finds that while issues at the top of employers’ agendas over the past year, including immigration and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) remain consequential, other areas such as AI and data privacy are moving to the forefront, according to a survey released by Littler.
“The shifts in this year’s survey relating to immigration and DEI do not mean that these issues have dissipated. Rather, businesses appear to be adjusting to a ‘new normal’ in the second year of the Trump administration and turning their attention to what’s coming next – particularly AI – as the workplace policy and regulatory landscape continues to evolve,” says James A. Paretti Jr., co-chair, and Shannon Meade, executive director, of Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute.
Key takeaways:
· Most respondents (84%) expect business impacts from policy or regulatory changes relating to AI use in the workplace over the next 12 months, double the share that said the same in 2025 (42%). Data privacy regulation rose in tandem, with 53% expecting workplace impacts over the next 12 months, up from 31% in 2025. By contrast, immigration fell to 49%, down from 75% in 2025, while DEI dropped to 38% from 84%.
· Nearly three-quarters of respondents (73%) expect enforcement by the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to impact their workplaces over the next year. Reflecting these risks, many employers report taking steps over the past year to address workforce staffing impacts of immigration policy and enforcement changes. For instance, 54% of respondents have prepared for government audits, inspections or site visits, while 40% strengthened employment eligibility verification practices and 38% adjusted visa sponsorship strategies.
· This year’s survey shows that as AI becomes more deeply embedded across workplace functions, employers are beginning to reevaluate their staffing needs. In light of expected efficiency gains, 37% of respondents say their organizations have reassessed, or are reassessing, job responsibilities, while 20% report reducing or planning to reduce hiring, and 15% say the same about workforce reductions.
· At the same time, advances in AI governance remain uneven. More than two-thirds of respondents (68%) report having a formal policy governing AI use in the workplace, which is a substantial increase from Littler’s 2025 Employer Survey, when 38% had a specific policy and 13% had developed guidelines. However, only about half of respondents to this year’s survey report having a formal review or approval process for AI tools (55%) or restrictions on the information that can be entered into them (54%).
· Nearly four in five respondents (79%) express concern about AI-related litigation over the next 12 months, with data privacy (49%), discrimination or bias (45%) and compliance with state and local AI laws (43%) emerging as the leading areas of focus.
· Employers expect litigation risk across a broad range of workplace issues in the coming year, with concern rising across several areas. One of the most notable increases is in workplace accommodation, where 67% of respondents expressed concern about employment-related litigation, up from 50% in the 2025 report.
· At the same time, employers continue to grapple with pandemic-era expectations around flexible work, which are complicating efforts to increase in-office attendance. Hybrid work remains the dominant model for roles that can be performed remotely, with 77% of organizations offering some form of hybrid arrangement, while only 16% report fully on-site workforces.
· As organizations adjust workplace expectations, they are also seeing a sustained rise in accommodation requests, particularly those tied to mental health. Over the past year, 67% of employers reported an increase in mental health-related leaves of absence and accommodation requests, continuing a multi-year trend.
· When it comes to managing leave and accommodation requests generally, nearly all respondents (97%) report facing challenges in at least one area. Managing extended or open-ended absences is the most significant hurdle, with 75% saying it was a challenge over the past year, while 70% cite ensuring managers are adequately trained to handle such requests.
