Tech workers in the Bay Area, brace yourselves. San Mateo County just dropped a bombshell resolution that might just save your professional bacon from the looming AI apocalypse.

In a move that feels like a Silicon Valley fever dream, county supervisors have unanimously approved a groundbreaking policy that essentially says, “Hey, AI, not so fast”. The resolution requires county departments to get creative and propose new job roles if artificial intelligence threatens to kick humans to the curb.

The Human Shield Strategy

Board President David Canepa put it bluntly: they want to “embrace artificial intelligence” while doing it “responsibly”. Translation? No worker gets left behind without a backup plan. If an AI technology could potentially eliminate a role, that position won’t vanish into thin air. Instead, it’ll wait until the current employee naturally moves on, through retirement, transfer, or voluntary separation.

Tech vs. Workforce: The Ultimate Showdown

Supervisor Jackie Speier dropped some historical perspective, comparing this moment to the Industrial Revolution. “We’re going to have to adapt,” she said, channeling big “evolve or die” energy. The county isn’t just throwing workers to the technological wolves; they’re creating a subcommittee to study AI’s potential impacts on both workforce and operational efficiency.

Workers’ Guardian Angels

Julie Lind from the San Mateo County Central Labor Council called the resolution “necessary guardrails” to prevent AI from becoming another corporate cost-cutting mechanism. In other words, this is a proactive strike against tech potentially turning humans into disposable resources.

While AI continues its relentless march forward, San Mateo County is proving that human creativity and protection can still trump algorithmic efficiency. Stay tuned, tech world, this could be the blueprint for worker survival in the age of artificial intelligence.