Over half of UK employers holding off on AI in recruitment
More than half (55%) of UK employers do not currently use AI in recruitment, compared with 36% globally, as employers and candidates continue to navigate the opportunities and risks of AI in the hiring process according to Morgan McKinley’s new 2026 Global AI Report.
The UK is also seeing greater caution among candidates, with 28% saying AI evaluation would make them significantly less likely to apply for a role, compared with 23% globally. More than a quarter (27%) of UK candidates also say they do not trust AI in recruitment decisions, compared with 22% globally.
Candidate use of AI is already creating challenges for UK employers. Some 40% say candidate AI use has made skills and backgrounds harder to verify, while 25% say increased application volumes are slowing screening.
The findings come as AI becomes increasingly embedded in working life globally. Some 62% of employees surveyed use AI daily at work and a further 15% use it weekly, highlighting how quickly AI has moved from experimentation into routine workplace use across chatbots, meeting and scheduling tools, document and presentation tools, and coding and data analysis.
Globally, 62% of employees surveyed use AI daily at work and a further 15% use it weekly, highlighting how quickly AI has moved from experimentation into routine workplace use across chatbots, meeting and scheduling tools, document and presentation tools, and coding and data analysis.
AI is also changing how employees spend their time, with 70% saying AI makes their work easier. Globally, 27% report spending more time on strategic planning and decision making, while 24% spend more time reviewing and validating AI-generated output.
Globally, concern about job replacement remains high, with 46% of employees worried that AI could replace their role. However, among employers surveyed, 64% said AI has had no effect on headcount, while 7% reported reductions and 13% said it had slowed planned expansion. In the UK, 56% of employers surveyed describe their long-term approach to AI as “people-first”, using AI to support employees rather than replace them.
Among employers, 55% reported improvements in operational performance, with operational efficiency and workflow speed cited by 63% as their leading reason for adopting AI.
Investment in AI skills is yet to keep pace with adoption. Only 25% of employees said their employer was investing adequately in their AI development. Another 28% described the training available as inadequate, while 30% said there had been no employer investment and they intended to upskill in their own time. Overall, 68% said they were receiving either inadequate or no AI training.
For UK employers, candidate use of AI is also creating challenges in the recruitment process. Some 40% of UK employers said candidate AI use had made skills and backgrounds harder to verify, while 25% said increased application volumes were slowing screening.
The UK is also seeing greater caution among candidates in relation to AI screening. More than a quarter of UK candidates (28%) say AI evaluation would make them significantly less likely to apply for a role, compared with 23% globally.
Meanwhile, 55% of UK employers surveyed do not currently use AI in recruitment, compared with 36% globally. More than a quarter (27%) of UK candidates also say they do not trust AI in recruitment decisions, compared with 22% globally.
Candidates are nevertheless already using AI extensively during their job searches. Globally, 78% use generative AI during their job search, including 59% who use it to write or improve CVs and cover letters and 43% who use it to prepare for interviews. Yet only 5% would trust AI to make a hiring decision independently, compared with 44% who would trust it alongside human decision making.
Chris Lawton, UK senior managing director, Morgan McKinley UK, said: “AI is rapidly becoming part of everyday working life, but our findings show a clear gap between employee concerns about job replacement and how employers are approaching AI. The challenge now is turning that intention into meaningful workforce strategy.
“Employees are already getting ahead of their organisations, developing AI skills and incorporating the technology into their day-to-day work, but many are doing so without sufficient support or training from their employers. Organisations need to give their people the skills, guidance and governance to use AI effectively and responsibly, rather than leaving individuals to navigate this transition alone.
“Recruitment is another area where that transition is already being felt. As candidates increasingly use AI in their job searches and employers grapple with verifying skills and experience, organisations will need to balance the benefits of AI with transparency and human oversight. Building trust will be critical as AI becomes more embedded in how people find and secure work.”