House of Commons Library Publishes Research Briefing on AI and Employment Law

Using AI at Work

The briefing paper states that the use of AI at work has been noted in three broad areas:

• recruitment - to devise job adverts, source candidates and filter CVs, and sometimes for automatically scored candidate tests
• task allocation and performance management - including scheduling shifts and evaluating performance
• in surveillance and monitoring of the workforce, tracking workers to monitor productivity or health and safety in the workplace

Employment Law Implications

The briefing acknowledges that there is currently no UK legal framework expressly for the governance of AI at work. It instead refers to the following existing areas of law that potentially restrict the use of AI tools in practice:

• the common law duty of mutual trust and confidence, which includes a requirement to be able to explain decisions
• the Equality Act 2010 which prohibits discrimination on the grounds of any protected characteristic, meaning that employers who are found to have relied on biased decisions taken by AI tools may find themselves facing a claim
• Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights which confers a right of privacy and which may restrict the use of surveillance tools to monitor workers
• the data protection framework, which places restrictions on data collection and processing

The briefing also talks about the Government's March 2023 white paper 'A pro-innovation approach to AI regulation', which proposes a non-statutory approach to AI regulation, relying on existing regulators to oversee the use of AI. The briefing contrasts the UK government approach with the more prescriptive approach to AI regulation taken by the EU.

Best Practice

Employers who use, or intend to use, generative AI technology in the workplace should consider introducing a policy to govern how the software will be used. The introduction of a policy, alongside open and transparent communication with the workforce, will help employers and staff alike understand the benefits and risks of using AI at work.

For more information, or to discuss your organisation's policy requirements, please contact Jessica Scott-Dye in our Employment team on 0117 314 5652, or complete the form below.