From recruitment to retention, technology has long been crucial to effective workforce management. And while companies may be flocking to tools powered by AI and machine learning, a New York City law set to go into effect in 2023 calls attention to the need to ensure that automated tools don’t multiply society’s ills.
The use of technology in workforce management is nothing new. But concern is growing over adoption of advanced data analytics and AI-based tools, particularly the risk these tools run of widening employment disparities between demographic groups.
To that end, in early 2023, New York City will begin requiring employers to conduct annual bias audits of any AI-based employment decision tools, including those supported by machine learning, statistical modeling and data analytics solutions.
The city’s move comes on the heels of several high-profile incidents of “algorithms behaving badly,” including the revelation of an Amazon hiring tool that was biased against women. However, it’s important to note that while concern over bias in AI technology is understandable, such issues are surely not unique to algorithmic decision-making.
Multiple studies have demonstrated that unconscious biases deeply affect recruiters’…
