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.
Finnish media company, Sanoma, has started employer-employee negotiations regarding 280 proposed job cuts. The goal is to save €50 million. Saving measures are also being implemented in distribution and printing. In addition, content production, PR and sales are to be streamlined. Sanoma's CEO, says the goal is to improve the company's profitability and meet the new challenges posed by a changing media environment and a weak economy.
The ERM has reported on previous restructuring cases at Sanoma, most recently in 2014 and 2012.
Update 07-09-2015: Sanoma has now decided to close down its printing company Hämeen Paino in Forssa, Finland. A total of 54 employees will be made redundant. However, these layoffs are not included in the previously announced restructuring measures and the total number of redundancies has been revised and now amounts to a minimum of 274.
Update 21-10-2015: The number of redundancies have been revised down to 241, including over 40 middle managers.
Eurofound (2015), Sanoma, Internal restructuring in Finland, factsheet number 84519, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/84519.