Use of AI In Employment Decisions: Legal Concerns in Hiring, Performance Management, and Termination
Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
- work Practice Area
Employment and Workers Comp
- event Date
Wednesday, December 15, 2021
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE webinar will guide employment counsel on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to manage many facets of the employment lifecycle, including hiring, performance management, and termination decisions. The panel will discuss the use of automated technology to screen resumes, analyze video interviews, suggest (or outright select) which candidates to hire, track employee productivity, issue written discipline, or recommend termination of employment. The panel will address the algorithms and their inherent biases underlying past employment practices or social conventions embedded in their code through the data sets they rely upon.
Ms. Lamm’s practice focuses on employment litigation, counseling, and investigations. She has substantial expertise advising companies on regulatory compliance with the legal and policy developments surrounding AI and other emerging technologies across the employment lifecycle. Leveraging her deep knowledge of rapidly evolving AI-related frameworks, Ms. Lamm helps companies develop a strategic and practical approach to crafting and implementing policies, processes, and legal risk mitigation strategies. She has advised developers and deployers regarding compliance with New York City’s Local Law 144, the Illinois AI Video Interview Act, the California Consumer Privacy Act), and other federal, state, and international data protection and employment laws. Ms. Lamm is a thought leader in this space, regularly speaking and writing on AI issues in employment. She also has extensive experience assisting clients in drafting employee handbooks and policies, conducting compliance audits and workplace investigations, navigating state and federal agency investigations, and advising clients on a variety of employment-related issues, including pay equity and DEI initiatives.
Mr. O'Keefe is an experienced trial lawyer who, for nearly 30 years, has litigated employment disputes of all types on behalf of employers, before federal and state courts, arbitral tribunals, and state and federal administrative agencies throughout the U.S. He has litigated employment-related lawsuits alleging breach of noncompete agreements, theft of trade secrets, discrimination, sexual harassment, whistleblowing, wage and hour violations, Title IX violations, breach of contract, defamation, fraud, and other business-related torts. His practice includes representing clients in complex class and collective litigation, including alleged violation of state and federal pay equity laws, violations of wage and hour laws, and discrimination claims. In addition to his extensive litigation practice, he regularly advises employers, writes and speaks on a wide range of employment-related issues. He counsels clients concerning pay equity, use of Artificial Intelligence in the workplace, management of personnel problems, ADA/FMLA compliance, reductions in force, investigation of employee complaints, state and federal leave laws, wage and hour issues, employment policies, and contracts.
Mr. Forman is a frequent writer and national lecturer on issues related to technology in the workplace, such as social media, Internet, and privacy issues facing employers. In addition to his technology know-how, Mr. Forman’s experience includes defending against wage and hour disputes and claims of wrongful discharge, discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. He regularly advises employers about issues and policies related to social media and the online conduct of employees.
Employers are looking for increased efficiency in their hiring process and examining the possibility of quick, measurable results using AI to help screen applicants. Employers use AI-related data to prescreen resumes and applications, evaluate video-recorded interviews, create work simulations and chatbots, and mine social media to determine applicants' digital footprint. The critical legal question is whether employers use these tools to make decisions about applicants and employees and what impact these tools may have.
Courts and agencies will evaluate AI technology under the foundational equal employment opportunity laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and equivalent state laws. Enforcement agencies and plaintiffs' attorneys will strive to fit these innovative tools under the existing framework. Employers will have to safeguard against discrimination claims that flow from the use of AI.
Enforcement agencies will evaluate AI tools the same way as any other selection procedure, looking at overall applicant-to-hire for adverse impact and then drilling down into a company's selection procedures. Policymakers and regulators are also concerned about the growing array of new sourcing and recruiting platforms powered by AI and machine learning, as well as algorithm-heavy screening and interview software that analyzes and ranks job applicants.
Illinois currently has a law that regulates this new area of HR technology. The Artificial Intelligence Video Interview Act regulates how employers can use AI to analyze video interviews. A New York City Council bill would require employers to inform job applicants if and how they are using AI technology in hiring decisions. Other cities and states and the federal government have introduced initiatives to study bias in algorithms and the impact of AI on employment decisions. It has been reported that the EEOC is conducting at least two investigations of cases involving alleged algorithmic bias and an EEOC Commissioner stated in September 2021 that the EEOC has begun monitoring employers’ use of this technology in the workplace to ensure compliance with anti-discrimination laws.
Listen as our expert panel guides employment counsel on using AI to manage many facets of the employment lifecycle, including hiring, performance management, and termination decisions.
- Common uses of AI in employment and human resources
- Hiring
- Employee management
- Termination
- Legal issues
- Implicit bias
- Disparate or unexpected outcomes
- Decisions solely by AI
- State restrictions
- Illinois
- NYC
- Other
- European Union restrictions
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- How can employers reduce the risk of liability associated with the use of AI that addresses an algorithm's bias?
- What can employers do to counteract AI that results in unexpected and unwanted outcomes?
- What restrictions on the use of AI has the Illinois law implemented? What are the restrictions in the proposed NYC law?
- What are best practices for using AI in hiring, firing, and employee management?
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