Lack of Preparedness: UK Struggles to Shield Workers from AI’s Advancement
The United Kingdom finds itself ill-equipped to shield its workforce from the pitfalls that come with the increasing integration of AI technology.
Rishi Sunak, amidst growing unease about the “existential risks” posed by AI’s rapid growth, is set to lead a summit addressing the safety aspects of artificial intelligence in London later this year.
Away from the level of jet-setting diplomacy, however, his government has been noticeably less interested in examining the dramatic transformation already wrought by digital technologies in the working lives of many people.
Challenges Amidst Transformations
A new report on “connected tech” published by the culture, media, and sport select committee highlighted the vast potential of the so-called “fourth Industrial Revolution” for a variety of industries.
Aspects of their jobs are at risk of being automated out of existence or so closely monitored that their autonomy diminishes, leaving them feeling like mere cogs in a machine.
Amazon serves as an example of the paradoxical effects of technology in workplaces.
Amazon proudly told the committee that the use of technology in its fulfilment centres had “reduced the physical burden on employees, reducing walking time and taking on repetitive tasks, and freed them up to focus on more sophisticated tasks beyond the scope of automation.”
However, Amazon employees have made it clear that the introduction of high-tech monitoring has not been a welcome relief from monotony but rather has led to a grinding intensification of their jobs.
And the potential impact extends well beyond the warehouse: recent iterations of generative AI are already being put to use in a wide range of fields, not just monitoring or directing workers but remaking their roles altogether.
Dr. Matthew Cole of the Oxford Internet Institute warns that this transformation may lead to the deskilling of roles as intricate tasks are divided into simpler ones suited for machines.
“Technological transformation would probably lead to a change in task composition and a deskilling of many roles as complex tasks are broken up into simpler ones to allow machines to perform them.”
The committee, pondering the issue of high-tech workplace surveillance, settles on a principle also advocated by labour unions: “The monitoring of employees in smart workplaces should only be conducted in consultation with and with the consent of those being monitored.”
Insights from Royal Mail and Beyond
In the end, this is what happened at Royal Mail, where the CWU union and management came to an agreement on how to use the data gathered by mail carriers’ portable tracking devices this year after publicly sparring before a different parliamentary committee.
Away from the spotlight of parliament, however, unions and campaigners have repeatedly resorted to using privacy legislation—the GDPR regime that originated in the EU—in response to high-tech employment practises for which little or no consultation has occurred.
In court, Uber drivers challenged the company’s facial recognition technology, which they deemed discriminatory. Just Eat couriers have used subject access requests to determine why they were removed from the application.
Campaigners argue that the government’s new, post-Brexit GDPR regime provides fewer protections for workers, and they question why they must use data protection law to address what are fundamentally employment disputes.
The culture, media, and sport select committee recommends that the government “clarify” the role of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in regulating the use of surveillance technologies, but this goes well beyond the HSE’s traditional responsibilities.
As the committee makes clear, this latest Industrial Revolution has enormous potential benefits for employees, their employers, and the economy as a whole. Existing employment safeguards appear ill-equipped to prevent significant hazards, however.
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Source: The Guardian
