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 contract catering giant Sodexo has announced an Employment safeguard plan (PSE) that would involve the net loss of 2,083 jobs, or nearly 7% of its workforce, mostly in business services, that is catering activities in companies (canteens). In addition, around 100 positions will be cut at the head office out of a total workforce of 500. A total of 2,183 jobs will be cut across the group, and a further 197 jobs in its catering subsidiary Le Nôtre.
The group intends to 'safeguard its competitiveness' by developing its offers and adapting 'its production and operating models', believing that 'these changes will make it possible to better combine the new market expectations while retaining all its activities and know-how in the field of services'.
FO (Sodexo's largest trade union) reiterated the group's commitment to 'use all possible solutions to preserve jobs'. FO calls for maximum use to be made of mobility to other sectors such as cleaning, medical-social services and prisons, where Sodexo also provides contract catering. 'We hope to reduce the number of job cuts to below 1,000,' stresses FO.
Eurofound (2020), Sodexo, Internal restructuring in France, factsheet number 102414, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/102414.