ByKARENMICHAEL Specialcorrespondent Employerscontinuetofindnewwaystoautomatebusinesspractices,includingusingsoftwareprogramsthatprovideforartificialintelligence(AI)inavarietyofemploymentpractices,includingrecruitment. Thesenewtechnologies,whilepromisinginmanyrespects,havegarneredtheattentionoftheEqualEmploymentOpportunityCommission,whichlastyearlaunchedtheArtificialIntelligenceandAlgorithmicFairnessInitiative.TheEEOCannouncedtheinitiative’sintendedmission“toensurethattheuseofsoftware,includingartificialintelligence(AI),machinelearningandotheremergingtechnologiesusedinhiringandotheremploymentdecisionscomplywiththefederalcivilrightslawsthattheEEOCenforces.” TheEEOCannounced,“Throughtheinitiative,theEEOCwillexaminemorecloselyhowexistinganddevelopingtechnologiesfundamentallychangethewaysemploymentdecisionsaremade.Theinitiative’sgoalistoguideemployers,employees,jobapplicantsandvendorstoensurethatthesetechnologiesareusedfairlyandconsistentlywithfederalequalemploymentopportunitylaws.” Peoplearealsoreading… InaclearsignofthepotentialdangersofAI,theEEOCfiledsuitearlierthismonthagainstiTutorGroupforagediscriminationaftertheEEOCdeterminedthatthecompanyprogrammeditsonlinesoftwaretoautomaticallyrejectmorethan200olderotherwisequalifiedapplicants. ThetrilogyofcompaniesprovideEnglish-languagetutoringservicestostudentsinChina.Accordingtothelawsuit,in2020thecompanyprogrammeditstutorapplicationsoftwaretoautomaticallyrejectfemaleapplicantsage55orolderandmaleapplicantsage60orolder. Iftrue,thiswouldviolatetheAgeDiscriminationinEmploymentAct,whichprotectsapplicantsandemployeesage40andover. EEOCChairCharlotteA.Burrowssaidofthesuit,“Agediscriminationisunjustandunlawful.Evenwhentechnologyautomatesthediscrimination,theemployerisstillresponsible.”Sheadded,“ThiscaseisanexampleofwhytheEEOCrecentlylaunchedanArtificialIntelligenceandAlgorithmicFairnessInitiative.Workersfacingdiscriminationfromanemployer’suseoftechnologycancountontheEEOCtoseekremedies.” TheEEOCalsojustissueditsfirstofpromisedtechnicalassistance,whichexplainstheAmericanswithDisabilitiesActandtheUseofSoftware,AlgorithmsandArtificialIntelligencetoAssessJobApplicantsandEmployees.ThisguidancewillbediscussedinmoredetailofmyAIPart2columnnextweek. AccordingtotheEEOCinitsnewguidance,AIcanbeusedinavarietyofsoftwareprograms,includingautomaticrésumé-screening,hiring,chatbotsoftwareforhiringandworkflow,videointerviewing,analytics,employeemonitoringandworkermanagement. Thesesoftwareprogramsareoftencoupledwithalgorithms,whichtheEEOCdefinesas“asetofinstructionsthatcanbefollowedbyacomputertoaccomplishsomeend.”Thesealgorithmsintheemploymentsettingprovidetoolsforalgorithmicdecision-making,whichcanbeusedinallstagesofanemploymentlifecyclefromhiringtotermination. AIaddsanotherlayerofcomplexitywherebyAIcanbeusedwhendevelopingalgorithmstoassistandprovideefficienciestoemployersinhelpingthemmakedecisions.TheEEOCcitesCongress’definitionofAIas“machine-basedsystemthatcan,foragivensetofhuman-definedobjectives,makepredictions,recommendationsordecisionsinfluencingrealorvirtualenvironments.” ExamplescitedbytheE
