With the rapid growth of technology and artificial intelligence in the workplace, a report published by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) highlights concerns that workplace surveillance disproportionately affects black employees.
Report’s findings
According to the report, workers in low-autonomy, low-skill and non-trade-union roles (such as in retail) are the most likely to be subject to surveillance. The IPPR’s research found that many workers in such roles feel less empowered to raise concerns where they consider that the surveillance is too invasive. The report also highlights that this disproportionately impacts black workers. It found that black workers are 26% more likely than average to be in jobs with limited autonomy than non-black workers and 46% more likely to be in lower-skilled roles. According to the report, nearly 75% of black employees do not belong to a trade union and, as a result, they are significantly more likely to be subjected to invasive workplace monitoring than in unionised workforces.
The growth in technology has meant that surveillance can now include facial recognition, biometric tracking and keystroke monitoring. Employers can collect data on everything from physical movements to physiological states. Some employers even use these tools without employee consent.
The IPPR warns that this unequal exposure within the workplace exacerbates the already present inequalities that black employees face and can often have a negative impact on their wellbeing. The report also found that, where surveillance is particularly invasive, this is likely to affect not only an employee’s privacy, but also their freedom of expression and association in the workplace.
Report’s recommendations
In view of these findings, the report calls for urgent legislative reforms. It recommends that these should include giving employees the right to be consulted before the surveillance measures are implemented. The report suggests that the law should require that, where a workforce is unionised, surveillance must be subject to collective bargaining. It also recommends that employers are required to disclose to employees the data they are collecting via surveillance measures and how they are managing it, with potential fines and the ability to bring an employment tribunal if an employer fails to do so.
The government’s Next Steps to Make Work Pay paper included a commitment to consult on workplace surveillance technologies, with a view to making it mandatory for employers to consult and negotiate, with a view to agreement, with its recognised trade union(s) or elected staff representatives if it proposes to introduce any surveillance technologies.
What can employers do?
In the meantime, there are steps employers can take to ensure that any use of surveillance tools is not discriminatory:
Keep monitoring practices under review to ensure they remain equitable and proportionate.
Before implementing new surveillance tools in the workplace, conduct robust tests across diverse employee groups to ensure there are no potential racial or other disparities. Working with experts to analyse the data may help identify any embedded stereotypes and ensure systems are fair and unbiased.
Articulate clearly the rationale for introducing any surveillance tool. What purpose will it serve? Be transparent with the workforce about its purpose, scope and operation to help mitigate employees’ concerns and demonstrate that the tool’s use is proportionate.
Establish a staff forum or consultation group, where employees can raise concerns they may have about monitoring practices. This will help employers understand the impact on workers, workplace culture and morale.
