Ethics in the digital workplace
Digitisation and automation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), can affect working conditions in a variety of ways and their use in the workplace raises a host of new ethical concerns.
The Europe’s largest travel group TUI has announced a plan to permanently cut costs by 30% to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic defining it as 'the greatest crisis the industry and TUI has ever faced'. The reorganisation will lead to 8,000 job cuts worldwide (10% of workforce) on a total of 71,470 employees. TUI lost €740 million in the first three months of 2020 and is requiring a rapid German state bailout; the company lost money since it had to cancel most of its holiday services until June. TUI is reviewing its business to identify areas to cut and could pull out of entire markets or destinations. Cuts to its airline were highly probable and it would 'divest and address' unprofitable businesses. Two previous worldwide restructuring were recorded with 3,600 job cuts in 2006 and 1,000 in 2003. In 2018, 150 jobs have been cut in Nordic countries.
Eurofound (2020), TUI, Internal restructuring in World, factsheet number 100700, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/100700.