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.
Bank Austria, subsidiary of the Italian banking group UniCredit, announced 800 dismissals by the end of 2018 as part of an internal restructuring process.
The restructuring forms part of a general cost-cutting and restructuring plan in the UniCredit group affecting 18,200 jobs throughout all divisions of the group. UniCredit plans to transfer Bank Austria’s Eastern European business to Milan, Italy, resulting in 800 job losses, of which 130 have already been implemented.
Additionally, the future of the retail banking segment of Bank Austria is uncertain. UniCredit plans to thin out branch offices or sell most of them by the end of 2016. Further details on this step are expected in December. Trade unions and the works council called in an employees meeting for 24th of November and have announced to take necessary measures should the company not be willing to negotiate fair terms with unions. The works council holds company’s shares with special control rights.
As Eurofound has previously report , Bank Austria been subject to several job reduction measures over the last couple of years including in 2013, 2009 and 2008.
Eurofound (2015), Bank Austria, Internal restructuring in Austria, factsheet number 85421, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/85421.