Open MIC and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) recently collaborated to release “Dehumanization, Discrimination and Deskilling: The Impact of Digital Tech on Low-Wage Workers.” The investor brief explores how surveillance tech, algorithmic management systems, displacement by AI and automated hiring tools contribute to increased workplace discrimination, diminished autonomy, and reduced job quality.
Wage earners on the lower end of the spectrum are disproportionately impacted, according to the research. In fact, McKinsey analysis finds that as AI expands further into the workplace, workers in lower-wage jobs are up to 14 times more likely to need to change occupations than those in highest-wage positions. Women are 1.5 times more likely to need to move into new occupations than men.
The goal of the brief is to highlight opportunities for both shareholder engagement with portfolio companies and public policy advocacy. According to Michael Connor, Executive Director of Open MIC, “Our report is a call to action for investors, who have a critical opportunity to help shape corporate policies and practices that generate equitable outcomes for workers while boosting corporate performance and broader economic prosperity over the long term.”
In developing this brief, the authors are building on the current work of the Advancing Worker Justice program at ICCR by adding deep research and expertise. Key digital concerns highlighted include:
AI and job displacement;
Algorithmic management systems used to track worker productivity;
How the gig economy suppresses workers’ wages;
The exploitation of data workers screening for harmful content, and;
A case study on how these technologies impact the direct care workforce.
“Management deploying these technologies may reap improved productivity and profits in the short term, but workers often cite the long-term dehumanization, discrimination, and deskilling they suffer as a result. Companies need to put worker welfare at the center of their decision-making regarding the use of workplace tech and adopt policies to mitigate potential harms before deploying them,” says Nadira Narine, Senior Director of ICCR’s Advancing Worker Justice Program.