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.
Up to 700 temporary workers employed by Dell in its Limerick manufacturing facility were let go at the end of October 2008.
A Dell spokeswoman for Dell emphasized that the redundant workers were all temporary workers employed on a quarterly basis. She added that the move had no impact on the 3,000 permanent staff employed at the Limerick plant.
"These are fixed-term contracts that are given to people on a quarterly basis. They are extra staff that are taken on to support the 3,000 workers on a demand basis and it doesn't have any impact on the permanent positions," the spokesperson said.
It is understood that the number of temporary workers let go is in the region of 700. Speculation over the future of Dell's Limerick plant has mounted since it was first reported that the US-owned company had decided to sell factories worldwide.
Eurofound (2008), Dell, Internal restructuring in Ireland, factsheet number 67324, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/67324.