Article
18 min read
Future of Work Policy Summit Recap: Key Learnings and Insights
Legal & compliance
AI

Author
Jemima Owen-Jones
Published
November 06, 2024
Last Update
January 31, 2025

Table of Contents
AI and Upskilling: Preparing the Workforce for the Future
Supporting high-skilled immigration
Global work and how jobs are changing
The 2024 elections impact on US labor policy and AI regulation
Closing remarks: Key takeaways from the future of work
Prepare for the future of work with Deel
Key takeaways
- AI and workforce evolution: AI will reshape how we work, from automating tasks to enhancing productivity. Policy must balance innovation and safeguards.
- Upskilling imperative: Companies must invest in reskilling programs to adapt to AI-driven changes, ensuring workers stay relevant and businesses remain competitive.
- Flexible work models: Hybrid and flexible arrangements offer cost savings and global talent access, but their success hinges on strong, adaptable leadership and thoughtful workplace strategy.
- Economic impact of migration: High-skilled immigration drives innovation and economic growth. Smart policies can keep the US competitive in the global talent race.
- Regulatory Preparedness: Businesses should anticipate new regulations around AI and workforce management, preparing strategies to stay compliant and competitive.
Are you curious about the future of work?
Our inaugural Policy Summit brought together members of Congress, officials from the US Department of Labor, esteemed academics, and industry leaders who explored key policy issues related to the future of work.
Specifically, panels explored how AI is transforming jobs, the role of high-skilled migration in driving innovation, and how work is changing globally. We also delved into the implications of the 2024 election for labor policy and AI regulation and discussed how businesses and workers should navigate many changes ahead.
Read on for a brief recap, and watch the full summit on-demand here: Future of Work Policy Summit.
AI and Upskilling: Preparing the Workforce for the Future
The first session, moderated by Seth Harris, the former US Secretary of Labor, was a thought-provoking discussion about AI’s transformative impact on the workforce.
Assistant Secretary Jose Javier Rodriguez of the US Department of Labor and Chike Aguh, the former Chief Innovation Officer of the US Department of Labor, explored how automation is changing job roles and emphasized the importance of upskilling to remain competitive in the evolving job market—and, importantly, the shared responsibility between the public and private sectors.
Mitigating the AI peril, capturing the promise
Chike Aguh discussed the challenge of addressing AI’s risks to workers while harnessing its potential benefits. He emphasizes the importance of mitigating issues like job dislocation and biased recruitment practices while capturing AI’s promise to enhance productivity and improve job quality by relieving workers of undesirable tasks.
“When I think about myself as starting off as a public servant in New York City public schools 20 years ago, the ways that AI could have made my job easier and better so I could have served kids better would have been really powerful,” Agu shared.
The Department of Labor’s role in easing the AI transition
Assistant Secretary Jose Javier Rodriguez joined the conversation to explain the government’s role in preparing workers with AI skills. He emphasized the importance of the public workforce system, which oversees job training and services across the US. He highlighted the impact of AI on jobs, stressing the need for real-time information to support workers during transitions, especially as certain job skills become obsolete.
“What we ought to be doing in our role at the Department of Labor…is to make sure that we have as close to real-time information as we can. And importantly, that we have the ability to respond and to support workers in transitions,” the Assistant Secretary urged.
AI as a tool for workforce development
The conversation then shifted to examine AI as a tool in workforce development, highlighting its potential for enhancing training and curricula. Chike Aguh explained the importance of integrating AI into upskilling programs, particularly focusing on its ability to promote in-demand skills among disadvantaged populations.
“How do you use the most cutting-edge technology that we have to help the people who have been on the wrong end of the economic stick the most? Usually, in society, we do the opposite...We actually wanna flip that paradigm and use it for the folks who are most in need,” Aguh explained.
Support for work-based learning
Next, Assistant Secretary Rodriguez spoke about the Department of Labor’s workforce development efforts, which target both workers seeking better jobs and employers needing skilled labor. Javier encouraged employers to explore apprenticeship programs to develop career pathways and highlighted a newly released set of principles and best practices developed by the Department of Labor aimed at improving worker well-being in the context of AI integration.
“…for developers of AI tools or employers looking to hire them, please check it out as you do that work…I want to give you just a minute so you and I don’t get drummed out of the labor world.” Assistant Secretary Rodriguez warned.
Read the full panel recap here: AI and Upskilling Insights from the Policy Summit: Preparing the Workforce for Tomorrow
Performance Management
Supporting high-skilled immigration
In the following session, experts explored how high-skilled migration drives innovation and economic growth and the political realities shaping these trends. Todd Heine, Founder of Legalpad (now Deel Immigration), moderated the session, which brought together Zeke Hernandez, a Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and Heidi Heitkamp, a former US Senator (D-ND).
The need to retain immigrant talent
Heidi Heitkamp began by explaining that there’s a significant bipartisan agreement on retaining skilled US graduates, particularly in fields like physics, to foster innovation and research in the US. The notion of attaching green cards to diplomas for foreign-born graduates is supported, but broader immigration issues, such as undocumented individuals and chain migration, complicate the political resolution of these agreements.
“...if we train someone to be a PhD in physics, let’s keep them in this country. We don’t care where they were born. We want them to be innovating and researching for American companies on American soil. And this has become an even bigger area with the advent of AI.”
“ 70% of all foreign-born graduates of PhD and post-doc programs want to stay in this country…let’s staple a green card to those diplomas and move forward,” Senator Heitkamp continued.
Immigrants as key contributors to innovation and economic growth
To back Heitkam’s point, Professor Zeke Hernande shared how immigration contributes to societal success for companies and the broader economy. He noted that high-skilled immigrants are major founders of tech companies and responsible for a significant share of patents and innovation in the US.
“Immigrants are just 16% of the innovative workforce, but they’re responsible for 36% of all patents in the US, so they punch way above their weight.”
“The supply of skills and talent in STEM fields and science and engineering is disproportionately provided by immigrants. For example, they’re a third of all science and engineering workforce, but of those who have graduate degrees, they’re nearly half, and they’re more than half in key sectors like AI, biotech, and other things that…are essential for our economy,” Hernandez added.
Hernandez highlighted the role immigrants play in enabling companies to enter and thrive in foreign markets.
“My research has shown that hiring immigrants is critical for companies to expand into foreign markets, to better tailor their products into foreign markets, to better be able to attract talent from other markets… without this talent, our companies, our economy would be significantly worse off,” Hernandez explained.
Senator Heitkamp agreed, noting how deporting undocumented immigrants could have a devastating impact on the US economy.
“We have this idea of what makes the economy work, but if we deported millions of people today who are undocumented, it would collapse the American economy, especially in areas like affordable housing construction. We need to make a bigger and broader argument about the economic advantage, but we also need to lead for those people who may want to stay here,” Senator Heitkamp urged.
The need for private sector advocacy in immigration reform
Zeke Hernandez then discussed companies’ role in advocating for immigration reform. He emphasized the importance of collaboration between the private sector and policymakers to effectively push for reforms and suggested exploring steps companies can take in this advocacy effort.
“...we haven’t updated the number or types of visas that we give in this country since 1990…We only give 140,000 employment-based green cards per year…my state of Pennsylvania alone could use all of them… We only get 85,000 H1B visas when companies are demanding more than half a million of them per year…” Hernandez explained.
Zeke Hernandez shared research indicating that not hiring skilled immigrants negatively impacts the US economy. Many individuals seek opportunities in countries such as Canada, India, and China, where welcoming policies are drawing entrepreneurs away from the United States. However, the complexity of the immigration system poses further challenges for employers.
“When I talk to managers, they tell me they’d rather have a prostate exam than go through the complication of hiring an immigrant given how difficult it is…platforms like Deel can smooth out the process, remove the friction, and allow companies to do what they do,” Hernandez enthused.
Senator Heitkamp concurred and stressed the importance of focusing on local needs and understanding the competitive disadvantage posed by sending trained individuals back to their home countries.
“We’re training in our great universities, incredible workers, incredible minds, and sending them home to compete against us. The story can’t just be, what do I need, but what are my competitors overseas getting as a result of our training and our universities that now I’m going to have to compete against?” Senator Heitkamp warned.
Shifting the immigration narrative
Todd Heine asked how to shift the immigration narrative to highlight its core benefits, focusing on both economic and social aspects.
Zeke Hernandez explained that today’s headlines are dominated by two stories about immigration: the villain story and the victim story.
“The villain story is this idea that immigrants are here to take your job, undermine your security, and destroy American culture…the other side appeals to the idea that immigrants are these pitiful souls who are very needy… that it’s gonna cost us a lot to do the morally right thing. And so what happens is in the court of public opinion, it comes down to fear versus pity. And in politics, fear will always beat pity,”
Zeke Hernandez argued that the business community should shift its message about immigrants away from fear and pity and highlight the positive contributions immigrants make to the economy and communities. He advocates for a narrative that appeals to self-interest and encourages companies to advocate for immigrant interests.
“...when you can go back and look at history, you’ve got to acknowledge we haven’t been the open arms society historically, but we’ve always overcome those biases, recognizing the critical nature of immigration in our economy.”
Hernandez continued, “We have many more jobs in my state than we have people who can fulfill them. That reduces our opportunity for growth in state domestic product is curtailing American domestic product. We’ve got to get people back to work. We’ve got to figure out the system…”
“… in 15 to 20 years, immigration will actually be popular politically, not out of pity, out of sheer demographic desperation and because of geopolitical competition. So my prediction is that in about 20 years, immigration will be something that both parties really want just because we need it so desperately,” Hernandez concluded.
Read the full panel recap here: Supporting High-skilled Immigration: Policy Summit Insights

Global work and how jobs are changing
The next panel discussion explored how businesses are leveraging global and remote talent to innovate while navigating technological and socio-economic shifts. The stage was shared by Nick Bloom, the Professor of Economics at Stanford University, Francis deSouza, Former CEO, Illumina; Former Board of Directors, The Walt Disney Company; Deel Board of Directors, and moderated by Isabelle Leliaert from the World Economic Forum.
The need to reskill to bridge skill gaps
Isabelle Leliaert led the panel discussion by highlighting the significant impact of technology on the job market. She shared that over a quarter of jobs will undergo changes and that 44% of workers will need reskilling due to increasing skills gaps.
“A study by the Quarterly Journal of Economics showcased that 60% of the jobs done today did not exist in the 1940s. Another research called the promise of global digital jobs shows that 92 million jobs could be done fully remotely by 2030, up from 73 million today, which of course, creates a lot of opportunities in today’s labor market,” Leliaert shared.
Talent as a crucial competitive differentiator
Francis deSouza explained that companies are now competing for top talent regardless of their traditional asset-led nature. He also noted that even small companies are becoming multinational from the start due to accessible talent and distribution.
“…every industry now is sort of fighting for top talent because that is a big, big competitive differentiator. And so that means you have to go where the talent is, and that’s one of the forces driving a more global workforce, a more remote workforce,” deSouza explained.
The advantages of remote work and global hiring
Nick Bloom elaborated on the advantages of remote work, highlighting that it can significantly reduce costs associated with office space—often about 10% of wage bills—while also providing access to a larger talent pool. He cites a study by NYU’s Arpit Gupta and others that shows that post-pandemic, fully remote companies tend to grow faster in terms of revenue and employment, primarily due to higher hiring rates and lower quit rates.
“If you start up a company and you’re fully remote... it saves me costs. I don’t have to raise as much capital. I can be more profitable,” Bloom enthused.
Nick Bloom continued to make the case for remote working, explaining that it’s essential to present data that appeals to CEOs and investors. He cites a study in which a tech firm allowed employees with even birthdates to work five days in the office and those with odd birthdates to work three days from home. The results showed no difference in performance but a significant 35% reduction in quit rates, leading to substantial cost savings for the company.
“...if I was trying to persuade a CEO and exec, is show them hard data and research... it’s about business success and profitability,” Bloom affirmed.
Francis deSouza agreed and urged companies to become global much earlier to tap into necessary talent pools and navigate challenges in hiring remote employees, such as local regulations and pay scales. He highlights the role of platforms like Deel in simplifying this process.
“The reason I joined the Deel board is because companies like Deel address a really important, difficult hurdle that companies face in accessing the global talent pools,” deSouza explained.
Nick Bloom concluded by sharing the significant rise in remote work. He noted that pre-pandemic, only 5% of workdays in the US were remote, which has now surged to about 25%. He predicts a gradual increase over the next decade, potentially reaching 30-35%.
“...we are not going back to the office. The return to office movement died in early 2023,” Bloom assured.
Read the full panel recap here: Global Work and How Jobs are Changing: Policy Summit Insights

The 2024 elections impact on US labor policy and AI regulation
Next, the audience’s attention was turned to the US 2024 election. The panel comprising US Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA), US Representative Kat Cammack (R-FL), and moderated by Matthew Kaminski, Editor-at-large, Politico, explored how the 2024 election could reshape labor policy and the future of AI regulation, and what it means for the workforce.
Regulation and data privacy
Rep. Cammack shared Republicans’ preference for industry-driven solutions over government regulation. Cammack expressed concern about the potential for regulations to stifle innovation, particularly in the AI sector, advocating for a focus on foundational elements like data privacy and credentialing while avoiding overregulation that could harm industry growth.
“...if we can get back to a place where we’re putting data and privacy as really the cornerstone of what the government is working on... I think us coming in and over-regulating in the space was really gonna be to our detriment,” Rep. Cammack urged.
Mathew Kaminski raised the question of whether last year’s presidential executive order was excessive, and if Donald Trump returns to the presidency, should he consider reversing any of its provisions?
Rep. Cammack acknowledged that the executive order contained some positive aspects but felt it was primarily a reaction to fearmongering about AI rather than a proactive, industry-driven approach. Cammack shared that, in her view, AI holds great potential for benefits across various sectors.
AI and automation: Striking a balance
Rep. Khanna joined the discussion to emphasize the significant economic potential of AI, particularly in his district of Silicon Valley, which boasts a substantial market value. He raises concerns about whether the benefits of this innovation will reach ordinary Americans or remain concentrated in tech hubs.
Rep. Khanna also advocates for centering workers in discussions about AI adoption to enhance their roles rather than replace them.
“I’ll give you a classic example of excessive automation. When I call to get help for returning something or for customer service, I struggle with my phone to get a human voice…I press whatever to get me a human person…we have to center workers in the conversation about how we use AI to enhance their jobs… as opposed to just rushing to adopt AI for excessive automation,” Rep. Khanna urged.
Robot tax and rethinking the tax code
In response to Mathew Kaminski’s question as to whether the congressman from Silicon Valley is in favor of a robot tax, Rep. Khanna explained:
“I think a robot tax is on the table, but I think the bigger issue is not whether we have a robot tax, but whether we have a better distribution between the taxation on capital and the taxation on labor…Right now…companies can deduct capital expenditure, but they don’t have the same ability to get tax credits for hiring people or investing in people. I’d rather we level that and give companies tax credits for investment in people and hiring people.”
Rep. Cammack believes the Republicans will not be in favor of additional taxes. Rep. Cammack advocates for a tax code that encourages growth rather than punishing success, suggesting that the current approach to R&D tax deductions is flawed. Rep. Cammack also highlights the need for long-term investment certainty to foster innovation and job creation.
“We want people to grow and create these jobs. The government doesn’t create jobs. It’s our entrepreneurs. It’s our folks from Silicon Valley all the way down to Miami Beach and everywhere in between that are creating these jobs. So we need to be facilitators rather than debilitators of this.”
Rep. Cammack continued, “If we were to start actually forming a tax code that was based on true incentives for growth... we would have much better results.”
AI in policy and political campaigns
Mathew Kaminski asked the government officials where they agreed on policy solutions regarding AI. Both called for a national data privacy standard to replace the current state-by-state regulations, believing that a unified approach is essential for companies to manage compliance effectively.
“We have to have a national data privacy standard… No company has the bandwidth to comply with 50 different states’ data privacy regulations. And so that’s something that we collectively, as Americans, we need to get that across the finish line…that puts people in charge of their privacy, that is favorable to industry,” Rep. Cammack urged.
To conclude, Mathew questioned how AI has impacted politics and political campaigns.
Rep. Khanna shared concerns about the role of AI and bots in spreading propaganda and misinformation. While acknowledging that technology exacerbates issues, Rep. Khanna emphasized that the deeper problem lies in the country’s division and the decline of respectful communication. Rep. Khanna advocated for teaching kindness and civic education in schools as a more fundamental solution.
“We often blame technology for something that is much deeper. And that is that this country is deeply divided. We have lost the ability to talk to each other with respect, to listen to each other with civility,” Rep. Khanna explained.
Read the full panel recap here: 2024 Election Impact on US Labor Policy and AI Regulation: Policy Summit Insights

Closing remarks: Key takeaways from the future of work
The policy summit wrapped up with an engaging Q&A session featuring Shuo Wang, Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Deel. During the discussion, Wang highlighted Deel’s vision for global expansion and its commitment to helping organizations and workers adapt to the evolving landscape of work.
“Market entry and global expansion are incredibly important. And it is required much earlier in a company’s life cycle if we want to scale or take large market share much faster. In order to grow the total addressable market, we needed to hire a team locally on the ground in those areas that we want to expand to,” Wang explained.
Shuo Wang explained how Deel’s global platform has evolved to streamline all aspects of global expansion and team management, eliminating the need for multiple HR vendors.
“We knew we could have a tremendous impact in helping companies to hire, in helping exceptional talents to apply for visas, in helping global workers get paid no matter where they live. That’s why we founded Deel five years ago. We believe in a future of work without borders, where every company, regardless of size, resources, or location, can compete in the global economy, expand, and enter new markets. And where every worker can access the best career opportunities,” Wang explained.
Wang closed the policy summit by offering words of wisdom for business owners and executives eager to explore new markets.
“…start small and then learn as you go…Use tools that simplify compliance and help manage international talents…begin with Deel’s Employer of Record or Contractor of Record model to test the water. Then when you are ready, you can scale up, and we can help you set up the entity and run local payroll…we designed the platform to support companies at every single stage across segments, from initial hiring to building out a full local team,” Wang concluded.
Prepare for the future of work with Deel
Deel is everything your organization needs to scale, pay, and manage a remote, globally distributed team all in one platform.
With Deel, you can:
- Hire international workers around the world in minutes
- Run global payroll for contractors and employees
- Manage a global team using our all-in-one HRIS
Book 30 minutes with a product expert to get started.

About the author
Jemima is a nomadic writer, journalist, and digital marketer with a decade of experience crafting compelling B2B content for a global audience. She is a strong advocate for equal opportunities and is dedicated to shaping the future of work. At Deel, she specializes in thought-leadership content covering global mobility, cross-border compliance, and workplace culture topics.