The Disproportional Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Workforce

Companies increasingly use digital systems to hire, fire, and monitor their employees. But who is keeping employers in check? Former director at the service workers union, UNI Global, and one of the most influential thinkers in the ethics of AI, Dr. Christina Colclough joins Azeem Azhar to explore how to ensure that the increasingly digital workplace of the near future protects workers.

They also discuss:

• How Covid-19 has affected the most vulnerable members of the global workforce.
• How management by algorithm erodes trust in the workplace.
• Why trade unions should employ data analysts and digital experts.

Further reading:

• “When algorithms hire and fire” (Equal Times, 2018)
• “Welcome Back to the Office. Your Every Move Will Be Watched.” (Wall Street Journal, 2020)
• “Time to Deliver Justice to Delivery Workers” (New York Review of Books, 2020)
• Related EV discussions mentioned in this episode: Laetitia Vitaud, Mariana Mazzucato, Meredith Whittaker, Binyamin Applebaum.

@CjColclough
@azeem
@exponentialview

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