42 percent of Gulf employees will withdraw from the hiring process if artificial intelligence decides it

Imagine you applied for a job you really want, only to learn that an algorithm will decide the fate of your application. For 42 percent of workers surveyed in four Gulf countries, that is the moment they close the page and withdraw. The figure comes from the report “Gulf Community Pulse: Employees’ Voice on the Work Environment” for Q3 2026, prepared by the EXE platform for sharing employee experiences in partnership with Epsose.

Who Was Asked and WhenThe survey included 1,700 employees in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar, across three monthly waves in July, August and September. The same index was launched in June 2026. The numbers here are answers about intentions and impressions, not recorded behavior in the labour market, and that distinction should remain evident when reading them.

The Tool Is Accepted, the Judge Is NotEighty-three percent of employees use the artificial-intelligence tools provided by their organisations, even if only occasionally, and more than half use them weekly. In recruitment specifically, 59 percent said they are willing to undergo an initial assessment interview conducted by AI. Comfort drops to 44 percent when the final decision is in its hands. Between the two stages there is a clear line: people accept that the machine screens and asks, but they are far less comfortable with it judging.

That line translates into potential behavior. Forty-two percent said they would withdraw their applications if they learned that AI decides, and 46 percent said they would be less inclined to apply to organisations that rely on it for hiring decisions. If these intentions hold, a company that hides its automation may lose candidates before seeing them.

Comfort Gap Between the Top and the BaseSixty-seven percent of senior leaders are comfortable with AI making the final hiring decision, compared with only 34 percent of team members. The gap recurs elsewhere. Ninety-two percent of senior leaders say they recommend their organisation as a great place to work, versus 72 percent of team members. Twenty-eight percent of team members plan to leave their organisation within two years, compared with 12 percent of leaders.

Training Changes Use More Than Tools DoSeventy-seven percent say they understand how to employ AI in their tasks, but only 63 percent feel their organisations support skill development. The impact of support is measurable: among those who have both understanding and support, 71 percent use the tools weekly, whereas the rate falls to 19 percent among those lacking both. Seventeen percent of front-line employees say the tools are not available to them at all, versus 6 percent of senior leaders, and one in four of them does not use AI in their work.

Job-Security Anxiety Has a Daily CostFifty-one percent of employees experience constant work pressure, but the share jumps to 65 percent among those worried about AI’s impact on their job security, and falls to 38 percent among others. In a less grim aspect, work pressure among people aged 18 to 34 declined by eight percentage points compared with Q2.

What Does This Mean for You as a Job Seeker?First, expect to go through an interview or automated screening at an early stage, as most employees themselves do not object to that. Second, ask openly before applying: does AI take part in the screening, and does a human review the final decision? Such a question is legitimate, and the company’s answer tells you something about its culture. Third, gather evidence of your work that a person can verify, projects, figures and references, as these remain persuasive when someone reviews the machine’s decision.

What You Should MonitorThis is a reading of the report’s findings as they appeared in press coverage, and we have not seen the full report. The sample covers only four Gulf countries, so it may not apply to Egypt or Jordan. What people say about withdrawing may differ from what they actually do when the same job is at stake. The trend, however, is clear: anyone who wants to hire with AI in the region must explain to candidates what the tool does and where the human role begins, and anyone seeking a job should know that the tool is part of the process, and that the final judgment remains a contested arena.