Protections for Workers Must Be Part of Government’s AI Policy Review 

ST. JOHN’S, NL – A string of high-profile stories relating to the governments’ (both current and former) use of artificial intelligence (AI) has sparked a growing conversation about how this rapidly evolving technology is used by our government and across the public service.

“We need to ensure that the use of AI by our government is thoroughly reviewed and that strict and transparent policies, procedures, and protections are put in place protect privacy, ensure accuracy, and safeguard workers and the general public,” said Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour President Jessica McCormick. “The recent controversies have exposed the fact that there are no clear guardrails or plan in place for how this new technology is going to be used by our provincial government.”

“In response to recent AI usage issues, Premier Tony Wakeham has said that the government needs to ‘tighten up’ how they use AI – we couldn’t agree more,” said McCormick. “Any review must put the best interests of workers front and centre. From job security and training, to privacy, to monitoring and algorithmic management, to bias and discrimination and beyond, workers need and deserve strong policies in place to protect their jobs and human rights. There is simply too much at stake to make this up on the fly.”

“Workers are rightfully worried about how AI is going to impact their jobs,” said McCormick. “This government has a chance to put people’s minds at ease by leading the way in their review of internal AI policies, through legislation, and at the bargaining table with the public sector unions.”

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