Nearly one in three UK workers don’t even know if their company has an AI policy, study shows

A survey of 2,500 full-time office workers across the UK in March and April 2025 showed big differences in AI awareness, with large portions of the workforce being left behind.

It showed clear inequalities with women, older employees, and workers based outside London, all significantly less likely to be informed about their company's approach to AI.

The research reveals a growing digital divide within UK workplaces.

HR teams and business leaders are being urged to prioritise transparency, clarity, and inclusive training to ensure no employee is left out of the AI conversation and avoid reinforcing existing workplace inequalities or creating new ones.

According to the research, 71 per cent of companies reported having a formal AI policy.

It also found that many employees who were aware that their company had an AI policy, had no idea what it said, with women (25 per cent) more than twice as likely as men (12 per cent) to be left in the dark.

Women were also found to be 36 per cent less likely to understand the contents of an AI policy when one existed, revealing a further gender gap in policy engagement.

Another significant factor was age, with the oldest and youngest workers most affected.

Workers aged 56 and over were nearly two and a half times more likely (14 per cent) than those aged 26–35 (6 per cent) to be unaware of whether their company had an AI policy in place.

Older employees were also far more likely to admit that, even if they knew a policy existed, they didn’t understand it.

Meanwhile, workers 25 and under, though generally more familiar with AI technology, also showed big gaps in their understanding.

HR teams and business leaders urged to prioritise transparency

Over 40 per cent of employees under 25 said they knew their company had an AI policy but did not know what was in it, suggesting that a lack of workplace experience might limit their engagement with internal communications.

Ben Richardson, Director at Acuity Training, said: “These figures should be a wake-up call for employers.

“AI is moving fast, but large parts of the workforce are being left behind.

"They either don’t know if their employers have a policy or are unsure of what their employer’s policy actually says.

"However, the UK is not alone in struggling with the challenge of AI.

The study also revealed big regional inequalities. Workers in London were most likely to say they both knew and understood their employers’ AI policy at 46 per cent, followed closely by the North-West (43 per cent)

However, other areas of the UK showed much lower levels of knowledge, in particular, Scotland (29 per cent), and Wales (31 per cent).

Paul Hunter, from Employ Borderless, echoed these concerns: “This is an international issue.

"We see issues with clear communication of corporate AI policies across all the countries we work in, the UK is not unique.

"Almost universally, employers need to work harder to clearly communicate their AI policies to their workforce.”