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 management of the Arc glass factory, near Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais), has announced a 'transformation plan' aimed at reducing costs: 350 jobs will be cut at the Arcques site, which employs 5,000 permanent and 500 temporary workers. In addition tothe job cuts, the two-year 'transformation plan' includes an increase in working time from 32 hours to 35 hours per week, the sale of warehouses that are no longer needed due to stock reduction and greater automation on packaging lines. Job losses will include the non-replacement of two out of three retirements.
Management will begin three weeks of negotiations with the trade unions on the implementation of a new working time organisation from 1 April. 'The situation in Arc is very alarming and even very dangerous in the very short term for our jobs', says the secretary of the Works Council. According to the management, gross profit increased each year since 205 when a US fund took over, reaching €38 million in 2018; but it would take almost twice as much, €70 million, for the plant to be profitable. The Arc group employs 10,000 people worldwide, half of whom work at its site near Saint Omer. Several job cuts have already been recorded in the database: 550 in 2014, 643 in 2010 and 2,700 in 2004.
Eurofound (2019), Arc International, Internal restructuring in France, factsheet number 96330, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/96330.