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.
Biosynex is an Alsatian medical equipment company, with 210 employees. The company primarily manufactured its products in Asia and handled final packaging in France and in 2019, only 13% of its references were manufactured in Alsatia, with all or part of imported components. During the Covid crisis, the company recognized its dependence on Chinese suppliers and decided to increase local production from 13% in 2019 to 30% in 2021, prioritizing high-value-added items. In 2021, Biosynex invested 1.5 million euros in new facilities for producing Covid tests and contactless thermometers. The initial recruitment for rapid testing units is expected to involve 10 to 12 people. The company secured preliminary approval for a 450,000€ subsidy from the Grand Est region
Eurofound (2020), Biosynex, Reshoring in France, factsheet number 263, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/263.