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.
Autoliv, the Swedish-American automotive supplier headquartered in Stockholm, has announced that it will close its site in Elmshorn, Germany, and cut 500 jobs. The reason behind the restructuring is that Autoliv wants to reduce its structural costs worldwide, especially in Europe. In Elmshorn, mainly qualified technical and commercial employees work - for example in customer support, financial accounting, purchasing, sales as well as engineering. According to the company, concrete measures are to be determined in accordance with local regulations and in dialogue with elected representatives and social partners. Trade Union IG Metall will work closely with the works council and coordinate further measures. Strikes are not excluded. The union points out that there is a social collective agreement that would guarantee job security and a fixed number of employees until the end of 2024. The Elmshorn plant was already affected by job cuts three years ago, when around 270 jobs were relocated to Eastern Europe (Autoliv-2020-DE). Autoliv is one of the world's leading manufacturers of safety technology for cars, including airbags and seat belts, with net sales of $8.8 billion in 2021.
Eurofound (2023), Autoliv, Closure in Germany, factsheet number 109318, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/109318.