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.
Carrington Wire Limited, a firm that manufactures wire products for the construction and automotive industry, is to close its site in Cardiff with the loss of 120 jobs. The decision follows a 90-day consultation on the future of the site that began in June 2007. Management at the firm attribute the decision to the effect that overseas competition has had upon the firm’s sales. The Cardiff site is due to close in December 2007, and the firm will concentrate its resources in the UK on its factory in Leeds. A spokeswoman for the firm said the company was working with unions, the Welsh Assembly Government and a training company to assist workers at the Cardiff plant.
Andrew Parker, Chief Executive of the firm, stated:
‘This operational restructuring is necessary for Carrington Wire Limited to strengthen its presence in increasingly competitive markets’
Mr. Parker also said that he wanted to express his ‘respect and gratitude for the professional manner in which our Cardiff colleagues continue to conduct themselves… their knowledge, commitment and work ethic continues to provide a benchmark for the group.’
Eurofound (2007), Carrington Wire Limited, Closure in United Kingdom, factsheet number 65875, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/65875.