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 British fashion retailer New Look has announced a plan to close 21 of its 29 stores in France and make 261 redundancies out of a total headcount of 400. The company will keep only a few large store in the Parisian region. The dismissals are scheduled from October 2018 to November 2021. Two stores were closed on 15 September (Calais) and 19 September (Rouen). The employees were informed only a few days before the closure. Employees are very upset to have been informed lately and abruptly. In March, New Look confirmed plans in UK to close 60 of its 593 stores and make 980 redundancies out of a total workforce of 15,300, as part of a rescue package to keep the business operational.
Eurofound (2018), New Look France, Internal restructuring in France, factsheet number 95476, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/95476.