The proliferation of artificial intelligence ("AI") has slowly fueled the technology's introduction into unprecedented areas. Indeed, large technology firms are now offering AI capable of assisting or altogether automating an employer's hiring, performance management, and disciplinary processes. As employers increasingly adopt this technology to screen resumes, analyze interviews, and issue disciplinary decisions, they are realizing considerable efficiency gains and saving valuable management resources.
While most employers may think of AI as a tool capable of objectively evaluating job applicants and employees, the technology is not immune from bias. As research has demonstrated, AI presents a risk of adopting any biases embedded in its code or that it detects in prior employment practices. A critical question then arises when this automated technology makes a decision that implicates employment laws. For example, if an employer utilizing AI learns that the tool refused to offer interviews to candidates based on a protected characteristic, such as gender, concerns may arise over any attendant liability. While most employment laws were written well before the advent of AI, legislators have already begun grappling with ways to regulate the technology to preserve employment protections. Likewise, courts will likely be asked to weigh in on whether existing employment laws may apply to the use of this technology.
In our webinar, we will discuss AI, its risk of bias, legislative responses to the technology, and the impact of already-existing employment laws on AI use by employers.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.