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.
VRT, the Flemish public broadcasting network has announced it will undertake significant restructuring plans in the near future. In total this plan will lead to fire 116 people and not replace 50 employees who change jobs or retire. The company management states that this plan is needed to succeed in a "multimedial growth jump" within a "financially difficult framework". By 2025 the public broadcasting network will receive €25 million less subsidies, which is the main reasoning behind the austerity measures, in addition to rising costs and inflation.
An employment guarantee for all employees is agreed upon with the trade unions until the end of this year. It is stated that 80% of the 116 redundancies will take place in 2023.
Eurofound (2022), VRT, Internal restructuring in Belgium, factsheet number 106748, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/106748.