⚖️ A note on using AI for HR and the law
Be careful out there!
Human Resources is one of those domains where even a small error can have significant consequences on an individual. The data that the Human Resources function holds on employees is often detailed, personal, and sensitive. And when it comes to how we use AI in the HR domain we should be particularly careful.
As I write this, the European Parliament have recently voted to pass the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, a law that aims to ensure safety and compliance with fundamental rights, while boosting innovation. And in late 2023, the president of the USA issued the Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence. And there are many other pieces of legislation, regulation, standards, and guidelines being put together by governments around the world.
Example - Article 6 of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act deems certain AI systems, when used in certain Human Resources domains, as high risk which mandates that a range of prescriptive controlls be adopted. These systems include the use of AI in biometrics, and specifically:
4. Employment, workers management and access to self-employment:
(a) AI systems intended to be used for recruitment or selection of natural persons, notably to place targeted job advertisements, to analyse and filter job applications, and to evaluate candidates;
(b) AI intended to be used to make decisions affecting terms of the work related relationships, promotion and termination of work-related contractual relationships, to allocate tasks based on individual behaviour or personal traits or characteristics and to monitor and evaluate performance and behaviour of persons in such relationships.
I can think of numerous AI use cases currently live that easily fit within the above criteria!
When incorporating AI into your workflows, and into any processes and systems you control, please be mindful of any legal requirements that apply to you. Human Resources practitioners should be leaders in dealing with people, information about people, and processes that involve people. As always, strive to be a role model in the effective and ethical use of AI across the Human Resources domain.