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 special purpose machinery manufacturer Krones announced to cut 350 jobs by the end of 2021. The job cuts will be implemented all over Germany where Krones has five sites (Neutraubling, Nittenau, Rosenheim, Freising, Flensburg). The company stated that it wants to make the job cuts as socially acceptable as possible. Already in September 2020, the company had announced a voluntary job redundancy programme, targeting 500 jobs. As a company spokesperson stated, 400 jobs could be reduced by voluntary agreements by the end of November 2020. However, against the background of the shrinking business volume, the company had decided that further job cuts were necessary.
Eurofound (2020), Krones, Internal restructuring in Germany, factsheet number 102887, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/102887.