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 Scottish airport cargo handler Menzies World Cargo operating at Schiphol Airport (Haarlemmermeer, west Netherlands) has filed for the dismissal of 101 employees in response to its largest customer AirBridgeCargo losing landing time slots at the airport, leading to a decrease in the volume of cargo being handled. In addition, dozens of temporary agency workers may lose their jobs as well.
The dismissals were announced on the same day that the union FNV drew the attention of government and Schiphol management to the widely experienced problem with time slots for cargo flights, threatening employment in cargo handling. FNV has announced it wishes to work together with Menzies to address this issue, but at the same time feels the decision to fire personnel already at this stage is premature and rash.
Menzies World Cargo is part of John Menzies plc., a Scottish provider of logistic services with a large aviation logistics branch, operating in 34 countries and employing some 36,000 persons worldwide.
Updated, 10/11/2017: After Russia threatened to close its airspace for Dutch flights because of the loss of timeslots for the Russian cargo flight operator AirBridgeCargo (ABC), Dutch Royal Airlines (KLM) and ABC were prompted by the Dutch government to negotiate. As a result, KLM has agreed to lend some of its timeslots to ABC until after winter, in response to which Menzies World Cargo has withdrawn its earlier filing for dismissal of 101 employees. The durability of these jobs however is yet uncertain, as the deal ends after the winter.
Eurofound (2017), Menzies World Cargo, Internal restructuring in Netherlands, factsheet number 92180, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/92180.