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-Dutch multinational company Unilever, third largest food and consumer goods company in Spain, has announced the closure of its ice cream factory in Barcelona under the Frigo brand. The 268 workers of the factory, most of them women between 45 and 55 years old, will be made redundant. Even though the factory does not register losses, the company does not consider it profitable enough. The trade unions have expressed their opposition and have announced future mobilisations. As of December 2018, Unilever employs about 170,000 people worldwide.
Eurofound (2018), Unilever, Closure in Spain, factsheet number 96247, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/96247.