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 Tyrol-based glassware and jewellery maker Swarovski announced plans to cut 200 jobs by the end of this year at its headquarters in Wattens. The company mentioned a difficult market situation as the main reason for these job cuts which will mainly affect the company's production, mainly temporary agency workers but also permanent staff.
The current restructuring efforts are the latest of a series of job cuts during the past years reducing staff from 6,700 employees in 2007 to currently 5,000. The companies work foundation (Arbeitsstiftung) will retrain affected employees to support them in finding a new job. Further steps will be taken in close cooperation with the local works council.
Update 20-10-2015: Swarovski announced to cut another 200 positions in Wattens, Tyrol. This should partly be achieved by natural fluctuation. For affected employees restructuring measures will be implemented in a socially responsible way, using the companies work foundation. For this year the company announced a double-digit increase in turnover and emphasised that it wants to retain the location in Wattens in which it will invest €90 million in the next three years. Swarovski has shed around 2,000 jobs during the past 8 years. To date the company continues to employ around 4,800 staff at its headquarters in Wattens.
Eurofound (2014), Swarovski, Internal restructuring in Austria, factsheet number 77601, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/77601.