Computer in command

On October 16, we were at the European Economic and Social Committee, for an engaging debate on the impact of artificial intelligence and algorithmic management at work, organised by FEPS and the EESC.

The renowned speakers included Nicolas Schmit, European commissioner for jobs and social rights; Brando Benifei, Socialists and Democrats MEP; Lucie Studničná, president of the EESC Workers’ Group, and Isabelle Schömann, deputy general secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation, among many others.

We presented key findings from two pan-Nordic policy studies from the “Digital Research Programme: Algorithms in the Workplace”:

• ‘Computer in command: Consequences of algorithmic management for workers’, based on a survey of over 6,000 union members in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland
• “Algorithmic management in traditional workplaces“, based on interviews with Nordic workers in traditional sectors including retail and hospitality.

We also examined EU legal provisions on AI in the workplace, identifying critical areas that require a reassessment of its application, the potential actions trade unions can take and necessary legislative interventions.

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76% of workers within sectors like warehousing and telemarketing experience one or more forms of Algorithmic Management (AM) in the workplace. They report having less autonomy in their jobs, a greater workload, feeling more stressed, and greater concern among employees about their job security.

These are the findings from the transnational survey Computer in command: Consequences of algorithmic management for workers conducted by FEPS and Nordic think tanks among over 6,000 union members in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland.

Algorithmic management, the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence to direct and control workers, is increasingly reshaping the modern workplace. These technologies are touted as pathways to greater efficiency, productivity, and streamlined operations. However, the reality is far more complex. While digital tools have the potential to revolutionise work, they often lead to heightened pressures, reduced autonomy, and increased precarity for workers.

At this event, we explored these impacts, extrapolating its focus from the unique labour environments of the Nordic countries—Finland, Sweden, and Norway— where long-standing traditions of labour organisation intersect with rapidly advancing technologies to their implications over EU policy making.

Read Professor Pheobe V. Moore’s keynote speech from the “Computer in command” event.

For additional information about this event, please contact Luis Sáez Jiménez, FEPS Project Officer at (luis.saez@feps-europe.eu)