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.
KBC, one of the largest Belgian banks, has announced to cut at least 250 positions on annual basis at its Czech banking subsidiary ČSOB in the coming three years, that is 750 job cuts in total. The aim is to improve efficiency. This year, ČSOB integrated some services and introduced automation in some areas. According to KBC, the bank should acquire the ability to better respond to client requests. ČSOB has already cut 400 positions from June 2018 to June 2019.
ČSOB is the largest domestic bank in terms of assets, which grew by a tenth to CZK 228 billion (€8.82 billion) in the first half of the year. The bank's net profit in the first half rose by 45 percent to CZK 10.9 billion( €421 million).
KBC operates in Belgium and Central and Eastern Europe. It has a total of 42,000 employees, of which 40 percent in Belgium and 27 percent in the Czech Republic.
Eurofound (2019), ČSOB, Internal restructuring in Czechia, factsheet number 98421, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/98421.