The dynamic development of new technologies has led to a moment when the use of artificial intelligence will increasingly affect the operations of companies, and thus the performance of work by employees. As a result, legislative initiatives are being taken to regulate the use of AI.

Artificial intelligence is an application that performs complex tasks, tasks that until recently required human participation. Using this type of solution increases the efficiency and productivity of the company by automating processes or tasks that once required the involvement of employees.

The use of artificial intelligence in a company is becoming more and more common, and in a few years it will probably become a standard. These types of solutions can be useful for many tasks, including those related to hiring, working conditions, and pay. Therefore, there is a need to protect workers with the participation of trade unions.

A trade union is a voluntary and self-governing organization of working people, established to represent and defend their rights, professional and social interests, which is independent in its statutory activities from employers, state and local government administration and other organizations. The functioning of trade unions in Poland is regulated by the Act of 23 May 1991 on Trade Unions.

One of the easiest types of trade union to form is a company trade union. A company trade union organisation is an organisation of at least 10 members who are employees of an employer covered by the organisation’s activity or persons performing gainful employment other than employees, who work for at least 6 months for an employer covered by the organisation’s activity.

In particular, the company’s trade union organisation deals with:

• taking a position on individual employee matters to the extent regulated by the provisions of the labour law and in individual cases of persons performing gainful employment to the extent related to the performance of such work;
• taking a position towards the employer or the staff’s self-government body in matters concerning the collective interests and rights of persons performing gainful employment;
• supervising compliance with the provisions of labour law in the workplace, in particular the provisions and principles of occupational health and safety;
• managing the activities of the Social Labour Inspectorate and cooperating with the National Labour Inspectorate;
• living conditions of pensioners.

The regulations contained in the Trade Unions Act define the rules for obtaining information from the employer by trade unions. Under the current law, the employer is obliged to provide the information necessary to conduct trade union activity within 30 days from the date of receipt of the request.

This information includes, in particular:

• information on working conditions and remuneration rules;
• information on the employer’s activities and economic situation related to employment and anticipated changes in this respect;
• information on the status, structure and anticipated changes in employment and measures to maintain employment levels;
• information on activities that may result in significant changes in the organisation of work or the basis of employment.

It should be noted that back in 2022, a bill amending the Trade Unions Act was drafted, according to which it is proposed to extend the catalogue of the above-mentioned information that the employer is obliged to provide at the request of trade unions to include information on the parameters, rules and instructions on which algorithms or artificial intelligence systems that affect decision-making are based,  and which may have an impact on working and pay conditions, access to and retention of employment, including profiling. At the moment, after the bill was submitted to the Sejm in September 2022, it was referred to the first reading in two committees, i.e. the Committee on Digitization, Innovation and New Technologies and the Committee on Social Policy and Family. That was a stopping point.

It should be pointed out that after the publication of the bill, doubts arose as to whether the scope of data to be obtained by the company’s trade unions would be enabled by the Act, including information on the parameters, rules and instructions on which algorithms or artificial intelligence systems are based, which have an impact on decision-making and which may have an impact on working conditions and pay,  Access to and maintenance of employment, including profiling, would not infringe trade secrets. This could lead to a conflict of interest, as the employer would have to share such information so that it could respond to abuses while protecting workers. However, disclosure of the information would violate the interest of the employer, who seeks to preserve a trade secret that could be used.

Artificial intelligence is also being worked on at European level. At the beginning of 2023, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission proclaimed the European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles for the Digital Decade (2023/C 23/01), which sets the benchmark for a safe and sustainable digital transformation that puts people at the centre, in line with the EU’s fundamental values and fundamental rights.

The declaration indicates that the use of artificial intelligence should be considered as a tool for humans and its aim should be to increase human well-being. It ensures that everyone has the opportunity to benefit from the benefits of AI, including by making their own informed choices in the digital environment, while protecting themselves from health and harm risks and threats to safety and fundamental rights.

The declaration also highlights the need to ensure fair and equitable working conditions in the digital environment. In this respect, the declaration recognises that everyone has the right to fair, equitable, healthy and safe working conditions and to adequate protection in the digital environment, as in the physical workplace, regardless of employment status, manner and duration of employment. Attention was also paid to the role of trade unions and employers’ organisations in the digital transformation. In this respect, their role should first and foremost set fair and equitable working conditions, including with regard to the use of digital tools at work.

On 9 October 2023, the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council debated the impact of new technologies on work. The increase in the impact of the use of AI on working conditions and workers’ rights has been noted, which brings benefits but also poses challenges for Member States.

Concerns about the threat to humans posed by the bias of digital programs are raised by entrusting them with tasks including: recruitment, selection, assignment of tasks, evaluation of work results, career development,

Termination of contracts.

These are not all the activities that artificial intelligence may perform for employers in the future. In order to counteract such threats violating workers’ rights, including those that may lead to discrimination based on disability, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, gender, age or sexual orientation, representatives of the European Union agree on the need to develop solutions in which digital programs and artificial intelligence are controlled by humans.

It was pointed out that some Member States at national level have developed solutions to inform workers’ representatives about the use of digital solutions in the organisation of work. As you can see, the solution, which is at the stage of legislative work in Poland, is already effectively in force in other countries. It cannot be ruled out that in the near future its introduction may be imposed by means of a directive on all Member States.

Source: https://poradnikprzedsiebiorcy.pl/-ai-w-firmie-a-zwiazek-zawodowy

Supported by Norway through Norway Grants 2014-2021, in the frame of the Programme “Social Dialogue – Decent Work”.