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Opinion | Technology May Violate Equal Employment Opportunity Act Israel today

2022-02-08T11:29:32.975Z


Around the world, artificial intelligence is increasingly used in the field of human resources • Meanwhile, legislation in the field lags behind technology and this has already discriminated against entire populations


The NSO affair and the alleged abuse of spyware, made even against unsuspecting civilians, made headlines the encounter between the most advanced technologies and civil rights.

But while we are talking about invasion of privacy and the backlog of legislation and the lack of a code of ethics for the use of means, which involve invasion of privacy, there are other areas where civil rights may be violated in the new technological conditions.

One of them is the entry of artificial intelligence into the labor market.

In recent years, the world of work has changed beyond recognition.

Among the distinctive features of this period is a reduction in manpower and its conversion to a parallel output, which technology provides.

The result is that more and more population groups are having to deal with the change, which obviates the need for employment and the emergence of challenges such as we did not know before.

One of them is a violation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act, which stems from the use of artificial intelligence.

Since the legislature in 1988 defined the parameters that prevent discrimination in hiring, many efforts have been made to enforce the law, and they seem to be bearing fruit in deterring employers.

But now there is concern that deepening the use of artificial intelligence for the purpose of hiring will take us back many years, as the digital age is ten steps ahead of legislation.

Studies already indicate that as the use of this intelligence in the areas of human resources, supply, sales, risk management and others increases, so does the increase in their profitability.

That is, artificial intelligence is already becoming a full partner in matters of leisure, culture, sales and shopping.

But as with any balance, there is profit and there is loss, and in our case we ignore the fact that artificial intelligence also becomes another "personality" in another area: our work.

In fact, even today the field of human resources is undergoing changes, after job search sites expropriated the exclusivity of human resource managers, while the unique human eye imprint was replaced by dedicated rubrics.

A report by the Brookings Institution stated that about a quarter of U.S. jobs are expected to be affected by the move to artificial intelligence.

In the business sector, the conflict between the need for efficiency and resource savings and the protection of human and employee rights is already at its peak.

Today, with a single line of code, it is possible to discriminate against mothers by limiting working hours.

It is also possible to have religious abortions, as long as it is defined that the algorithm must identify profiles of users who are not active on social networks on Saturdays and holidays.

Relatively easily, one can also filter out those who are often absent from work due to reserve service.

The use of artificial intelligence may increase inequality, with identification software, which allows you to filter skin color, gender, age and other areas, producing discrimination that the legislature has precisely tried to prevent.

One of the reasons that led Amazon a few years ago to shelve recruitment algorithms was an analysis performed within the system, which revealed that the software systematically housed women and this discrimination was not avoided.

At the beginning of 2020, a committee headed by Dr. Erna Berry was established in Israel, which is to examine the policy regarding artificial intelligence. This committee will define various tools and principles, including transparency and accountability in the actual use of an artificial intelligence system; providing explanations for the rationale of machine-made decisions; developing technological tools to examine machine decision-making processes and create standards for understanding or explaining decisions; Ethnic and gender diversity of the labor force in these areas.

In any case, the key also lies in the legal world, which in the meantime is lazily pursuing technology.

Appropriate committees must be established that can adapt the legal world to create a proper, moral and appropriate work environment for all types of populations.

These dedicated committees will deal with the definitions and boundaries of artificial intelligence in the field of work, formulating an appropriate strategy and anchoring it in legislation, thus avoiding a reality where courts are required to address present and future issues with a legal infrastructure belonging to the past.

In other words, in order for entire populations not to be ejected from the resurgent labor market and for employer-employee relations to be founded on justice, strategic planning is required that will address the work environment not only in business or security terms but also ethically.

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Source: israelhayom

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