HRIS / Technology

AI ethics: Use our sample policy

08/22/2024

Artificial intelligence in the workplace is here to stay. Without some ethical guideposts on its use, however, you may have just let a monster into your workplace. The EEOC and the Department of Labor have already dealt with some of the issues as legal compliance matters. But there’s more, because you can be legally compliant but still use AI in an unethical way.

Here’s what the EEOC’s lawyers are focusing on this year

08/12/2024

Despite the looming election and Supreme Court decisions that could eventually curtail the influence of federal agencies, the EEOC continues to push an aggressively pro-employee agenda, and it’s committed to filing lawsuits against employers that violate anti-discrimination and anti-harassment laws.

Good as the real thing? Verify electronic signatures

08/09/2024

Your employee handbooks and other employment documents may exist only in electronic form. That means acknowledgments testifying that employees have received and read those docs must be “signed” electronically, too. While nearly all jurisdictions recognize the legality of electronic signatures, it’s vital for you to have a system to authenticate that such a signature was really executed by a particular person.

Beware relying solely on AI to screen job applicants

08/02/2024

Employers looking to hire staff increasingly turn to artificial intelligence programs to help them screen candidates. A recent case shows the perils of automated systems and the inherent risk some pose.

EEOC adds first-ever chief AI officer

07/17/2024

In a sign that the EEOC is taking artificial intelligence in human resource management seriously, the agency has created and filled a new position—chief AI officer.

Paging all humans: The FLSA & the FMLA still need you

07/17/2024

Artificial intelligence has taken firm hold in American workplaces. By far, the focus is on how generative AI will either streamline tasks or supplant employees altogether. The Department of Labor isn’t buying the employees-will-soon-be-replaced talk. Human oversight is still necessary to the proper functioning of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act, the DOL concluded.

HR’s big artificial intelligence question: Does AI candidate screening discriminate?

07/10/2024

AI skeptics and a growing cadre of plaintiffs’ attorneys argue that instead of preventing hiring bias, relying on an AI algorithm may actually bake discrimination into the selection process. That’s what is alleged in one recent complaint filed with the Federal Trade Commission and another with the EEOC.

AI in recruitment: Harnessing technology for efficient hiring

06/20/2024

The recruiting processes used by modern HR teams are evolving rapidly in response to advancements in technology and innovative tools. These tools are not only revolutionizing the methods HR professionals use to identify and attract talent but also significantly improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the hiring process.

Beware AI screening based on race, age and disability

06/20/2024

A class-action complaint filed earlier this year takes direct aim at the discriminatory practices inherent in AI tools. Workday, a human resource management service that provides applicant screening services as one of its capabilities, is accused of using machine-learning algorithms and artificial intelligence tools to screen out applicants who are African-American, disabled and/or over the age of 40.

Survey: Employers bracing for regulatory crackdown, legislation on AI in HR

06/03/2024

The 12th Annual Employer Survey by the Littler Mendelson employment law firm found that nearly eight in 10 employers expect moderate or significant impacts from compliance efforts by the Department of Labor over the next year, up from 65% in 2022. About three-quarters anticipate moderate or significant impact from the Biden administration’s pro-union National Labor Relations Board.