UAE employers face new workforce resilience test as AI, cyber and health pressures converge, according to Marsh’s 2026 People Risk report
Dubai(News Desk):: – UAE employers are facing a broader workforce resilience challenge as artificial intelligence adoption, cyber threats, regional disruption, rising health costs and employee wellbeing pressures converge, according to the 2026 People Risk report released by Marsh (NYSE: MRSH), a global leader in risk, reinsurance and capital, people and investments, and management consulting.
Drawing on insights from more than 4,500 HR and Risk professionals across 26 markets, including 103 respondents in the UAE, the report ranks the workforce-related risks most likely to affect organisations over the next one to two years. In the UAE, mindset barriers to artificial intelligence adoption ranked as the top people risk, followed by inadequate cyber threat literacy, inadequate M&A due diligence, labour shortages and changing regulatory environment.
The findings suggest that people risk in the UAE is no longer confined to traditional HR issues. It is increasingly linked to business continuity, workforce health, digital transformation, cyber resilience, corporate transactions, compliance and reputation. While AI adoption is the top-ranked risk, the wider challenge for employers is how to protect, support and retain people while maintaining performance through rapid change and disruption.
The report also shows that technology risk is closely connected to workforce behaviour and preparedness. In the UAE, the top AI-related planning priorities include training employees to identify malicious AI-generated misinformation or disinformation, cited by 38%, addressing cybersecurity vulnerabilities linked to AI adoption at 34%, ensuring employees critically review AI-generated content at 33%, and preventing data privacy or confidentiality breaches through AI at 32%.
“People risks in the UAE can no longer be treated as secondary workforce issues. They are now directly linked to business continuity, employee wellbeing, digital transformation and organisational resilience,” said Adel Alderi, Senior Consultant at Mercer Marsh Benefits, UAE. “AI adoption is an important part of the findings, but the wider issue for employers is workforce resilience. Organisations are dealing with rising health and benefit costs, mental wellbeing pressures, employee mobility challenges and financial insecurity at the same time as they adopt new technologies and manage regional disruption. The priority is to ensure that people are prepared, supported and protected as work and operating conditions change.”
Key Findings for the UAE
Health, wellbeing and financial pressure remain central to resilience:Although AI and cyber risks now sit at the top of the UAE people risk agenda, health and wellbeing remain significant concerns for employers. Increasing health and benefit costs rank sixth among UAE people risks, while unsafe working conditions and employee financial insecurity also feature in the top ten.
The findings show that 62% of UAE HR and Risk professionals say increasing health and benefit costs are almost certain or likely to occur. The same proportion say risks related to unsafe physical and/or psychological working conditions would have a catastrophic or high impact on their organisation. Separately, 29% are concerned about limited support for employee mental health and emotional wellbeing at work. For employers, this means workforce resilience is not only about technology or operations. It also depends on whether employees are healthy, supported, financially secure and able to perform under pressure.
Simona Musat, Mercer Marsh Benefits Multinational Leader, UAE said “As healthcare costs continue to rise, organizations are recognizing that workforce health is directly linked to business resilience. Supporting employee wellbeing isn’t simply about managing benefits costs; it’s about creating an environment where people can perform at their best, adapt to change and contribute to long-term organizational success.”
Digital transformation is creating a workforce readiness challenge:Mindset barriers to AI adoption rank as the UAE’s number one people risk, showing that the human side of technology adoption has become a core business issue. As organisations accelerate AI investment, employers need to focus on skills, confidence, governance and responsible use, rather than treating AI as a standalone technology deployment.
Cyber literacy is closely connected to this challenge. Inadequate cyber threat literacy ranks second in the UAE and first globally, underlining that cyber resilience depends on workforce awareness and behaviour, not only technology systems. As AI tools become more embedded in work, employees’ ability to identify misinformation, protect sensitive data and critically review AI-generated content will become increasingly important.
Regional disruption is increasing pressure on employers: Against a backdrop of regional disruption, people risks are becoming more immediate for UAE organisations. Respondents identified improving visibility into supply chain dependencies as the leading planning priority for geopolitical risk, cited by 50%. This was followed by ensuring employee safety and wellbeing at 44%, supporting employee mental health at 42%, and retaining and recruiting talent in affected areas at 36%.
People risk is becoming a governance and transaction issue:Inadequate M&A due diligence ranks third among UAE people risks, followed by labour shortages and regulatory change. This points to a broader shift in how people risk is being understood. Workforce-related exposures are increasingly relevant to transactions, integration planning, liabilities, regulatory compliance and long-term business performance. For UAE employers, this means people-related risks need to be assessed earlier and more systematically, particularly during transactions, restructuring, expansion and transformation programmes. Weak workforce due diligence or fragmented decision-making can create financial, operational and reputational consequences after strategic decisions have been made.
The UAE people risk agenda has broadened since 2024:The UAE findings also show how the people risk agenda has evolved. In 2024, increasing health and benefit costs ranked as the top UAE people risk, followed by technology skills shortages and concerns around diversity, equity and inclusion. In 2026, those pressures remain, but the agenda has broadened, with AI adoption, cyber literacy, inadequate M&A due diligence, labour shortages and regulatory change now sitting at the top of the ranking. This shift suggests that employers are managing a more complex people risk environment, where health and benefits remain important but are increasingly connected to technology adoption, cyber behaviour, governance, regulation and workforce continuity.
Stronger HR and Risk alignment is becoming a critical requirement:As people-related risks become more closely linked to continuity, productivity and reputation, the report highlights the need for closer collaboration between HR and Risk teams. In the UAE, 40% of respondents said HR and Risk fully collaborate to manage people risks, while 40% said they partially collaborate and 20% said they collaborate minimally.
For UAE organisations, stronger alignment between HR, Risk, Finance and leadership teams will be essential to managing this broader risk agenda. Employers that take a joined-up approach will be better placed to support employees, protect operations and make more balanced decisions on technology, benefits, workforce planning and resilience.
