GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico – As organizations adopt AI tools at increasing speed, a growing number of workers say quality standards are quietly slipping, creating a new and often invisible burden at work. 

New research from Zety, a resume templates service, finds that low-quality AI-generated output, known as “workslop,” is now a routine part of many employees’ workloads, costing time, increasing stress and eroding morale.

According to the Rise of Workslop Report, most workplaces have not fully embraced workslop, but tolerance is rising. While 39% of employees say low-quality AI output is completely unacceptable and corrected, many report some level of acceptance, especially when deadlines are prioritized over polish – leaving workers to fix problems themselves.

Key findings include

  • Workslop is widespread: 1 in 5 employees say low-quality AI work is often overlooked if deadlines are met, while nearly one-third say it is noticed but tolerated.
  • Time loss is significant: 66% of workers spend up to six hours or more each week correcting errors caused by workslop.
  • Employee impact is growing: Workslop contributes to higher stress (29%), lower morale (25%), reduced productivity (25%) and burnout (21%).
  • Generational divide: More than half of workers (53%) believe younger generations are more tolerant of workslop than older colleagues.

As AI tools become embedded in daily workflows, attitudes toward quality appear to be changing. In their workplace, employees report that workslop is viewed as:

  • Completely unacceptable and corrected: 39%.
  • Somewhat unacceptable but tolerated: 31%.
  • Somewhat acceptable and overlooked if deadlines are met: 21%.
  • Completely acceptable, with speed prioritized over polish: 9%.

These findings suggest that while outright acceptance remains limited, tolerance is becoming increasingly common, particularly in fast-paced environments.

When workslop reaches employees’ inboxes, nearly half (49%) say they fix the issues themselves rather than escalate or reject the work. This added labor often goes unrecognized, yet it adds up quickly. Two-thirds of workers report spending up to six or more hours each week correcting AI-related errors.

As a result, employees say workslop significantly or moderately harms:

  • Stress levels: 70%.
  • Productivity: 67%.
  • Overall morale: 65%.
  • Burnout risk: 53%.

“Workslop creates a layer of invisible labor that rarely shows up in job descriptions or performance reviews,” said Jasmine Escalera, career expert for Zety. “Employees are quietly fixing mistakes just to keep work moving, often outside their core responsibilities. Over time, that extra, unrecognized work adds up to exhaustion, frustration and disengagement.”

Beyond individual strain, workers also see organizational consequences. The top perceived risks associated with workslop include:

  • Wasted time and lost productivity (36%).
  • Spread of misleading or false information (30%).
  • Damage to professional or organizational reputation (24%).

The data highlights a growing tension in the modern workplace: As AI accelerates output, workers are increasingly responsible for absorbing the quality costs. Without clearer standards and accountability, speed risks becoming the default measure of success, leaving employees to shoulder the consequences.