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 American pharmaceutical group Ely Lilly (based in Indianapolis) announced the closure of its plant in Mont-Saint-Guibert on Wednesday, 28 June 2006. The research and development centre in Belgium currently employs 330 people. The management explained that the planned closure is due to an overcapacity in R&D within the group and also to the global situation in the pharmaceutical industry, which is becoming more and more competitive. According to trade unions within the plant, the closure will become effective in 15-18 months time. Other closures expected within the group are the R&D plant in Hamburg, which employs 150 people, and the production plant at Basingstoke (UK) which employs 150 people. All these activities will be relocated to the company headquarters in the United States. Employees at the Mont-Saint-Guibert plant were surprised by this decision as the company is in good shape and achieved 14.6 billion dollars in sales turnover last year and profits of 1.9 billion dollars.
Eurofound (2006), Lilly, Offshoring/Delocalisation in Belgium, factsheet number 63702, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/63702.