As the influence of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to permeate the workplace, its accessibility and widespread use are becoming defining elements of the modern professional landscape.
When carefully harnessed, AI has the potential to revolutionize business operations, offering efficiency, innovation, and transformative solutions. However, as organizations increasingly integrate AI into their practices, ethical considerations surrounding its use have come to the forefront. This has prompted responses from regulatory and legislative bodies, including the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the New Jersey Legislature.
The EEOC is focusing on employers’ increasing use of technology as part of its Strategic Enforcement Plan for 2024. This focus includes using technology such as AI and machine learning to target job advertisements, recruit applicants, or make hiring decisions where such systems intentionally exclude or adversely impact protected groups. Perhaps the most visible example of AI employment bias to date has been at Amazon. The company's AI-driven hiring model encountered a major stumbling block: a propensity to favor male candidates for technical roles. The algorithm inadvertently absorbed ingrained biases from its human-generated dataset.
"Integrating generative AI into decision-making seems like a good defense against bias, particularly in hiring; however, unconscious bias can seep in," said Amy Vazquez, Interim President of Employers Association of New Jersey. "Organizations must remain vigilant about the ethical and compliance implications of using this technology in HR practices."
According to the EEOC, whether an employer or computer made a biased employment decision, the employer is ultimately liable. Employers should consider working with their vendors from the start to ensure they are using products correctly and reducing potential for biased decision-making. The EEOC recommends that employers test all employment-related AI tools early and often to ensure they aren’t causing legal harm.
In New Jersey, proposed legislation (A4909) mandates a “bias audit” for hiring software, allowing only tools that have undergone scrutiny for discriminatory patterns. It would require annual reviews of whether programs comply with state law.
“As employers explore best practices for integrating AI into existing workflows,” says Vazquez, “their focus should be on leveraging AI’s capabilities with a keen eye towards fairness and compliance.”
Employers Association of New Jersey (EANJ) is hosting a one-hour webinar aimed at providing HR professionals with knowledge and strategies needed to integrate AI technology effectively while fostering innovation in HR practices.
EANJ is a nonprofit trade association dedicated to improving employer-employee relations and facilitating information exchange among employers. It does not render legal services or offer legal opinions.
