Delegates at Fórsa’s biennial delegate conference in Killarney supported a motion to develop strategies to protect members against the risks of “disruption” driven by the technology on Friday morning.
It said potential issues include “job displacement, deskilling and surveillance”.
However, it said the union should pursue opportunities for productivity gains including a shorter working week.
Ashley Connolly, head of Fórsa’s health and welfare division, said public services are not production lines and members are not costs on a spreadsheet.
She urged members to get in touch with their branch and union officials when they hear a “whisper” that something new is being introduced in their workplace.
“We must make sure we have the protections,” she said.
“But we must make sure we get the gains. This isn’t a one-way street.”
She said AI cannot be used as an excuse to cut staff, undermine professional judgement, or strip away the human contact people depend on in public services.
One delegate noted that the public service pay agreement is set to expire soon and the motion enables AI to be included in upcoming talks.
AI would mean a major overhaul of how public servants work and should be central to the government’s plans, she said.
She said it could be the next industrial revolution and is coming at an extraordinary speed.
The delegate said they can shape how AI is introduced or decisions could be made over their heads. “This is a moment for leadership,” she said, adding that the union must make sure workers and society benefit, not just big tech billionaires.
Another delegate spoke of her concerns that jobs will be replaced and low paid staff, women and those in customer service roles will be most at risk.
The motion noted that the government published a national digital and AI strategy in February this year.
It sets out 90 actions and commits to digitalising 100pc of key public services by 2030 as well as providing AI training for public servants.
“It contains no framework for worker voice, collective bargaining, benefit-sharing, or negotiated protections for workers affected by AI adoption,” it said.
It noted that the current public service pay agreement expires next month.
The motion said this creates “both an immediate strategic opportunity and urgent need for Fórsa to advance a clear, credible position on AI in the forthcoming negotiations”.
It said AI adoption has profound implications across the union. This would affect how services are delivered, roles are structured and public resources allocated.
“History shows that productivity gains from new technology do not automatically benefit workers,” it said. “Previous waves of innovation increased efficiency while real wages stagnated.
“Without deliberate intervention, AI-drive productivity gains risk following the same pattern”.
It said recent ESRI research found that Ireland has Europe’s biggest gender gap in advanced digital skills.
A total of 44pc of men use them at work compared with 18pc of women.
It said this gap is nearly double the EU average, signalling a digital glass ceiling that AI could deepen.