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 management of the Banque de France announced to the unions its plan to cut about 600 positions – around 5% of its workforce – by 2024, in addition to the 135 job cuts already announced in January 2021.
Unions denounce a 'dogmatic' management of staffing levels, without taking a step back on the merits of the cuts or their consequences. The new redundancy plan was presented on 20 March and the Social and Economic Committee is due to give its opinion on 15 April. According to a CGT union delegate, the job cuts should be covered by retirements, thus avoiding the need for management to impose forced departures.
Two former restructurings involving the Banque de France were recorded in the ERM Database in 2012, with 2,500 job cuts, and in 2003, with 2,300 job cuts.
Eurofound (2021), Banque de France, Internal restructuring in France, factsheet number 104497, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/104497.