Offered as a bridge between the Employment Rights Bill and the Data (Use and Access) Bill, both of which are making their way through Parliament, Data on Our Minds: Affective Computing at Work is a major new report produced by the Institute for the Future of Work (IFOW).

The report identifies what IFOW calls a new frontier in the rapid development and applications of inferential biometrics-based systems at work.

“Alongside our experiences as consumers, citizens and patients, the accumulation of data and technological monitoring is increasingly focusing on people’s behaviour and activities in the workplace,” it explains. “This is called 'affective computing.”

The report highlights the introduction of Algorithmic Affect Management (AAM) technologies — designed to take these inferences about people’s emotions and behaviours at work and connect them to algorithmic management systems.

These can then make automated decisions about shift patterns, rates of pay and performance ratings.

While AAM has the potential to improve work design and conditions, the report argues that certain applications are linked to exploitative practices and increased technostress, driving new forms of harm to health and labour rights.

It describes an urgent need for regulations that address the multifaceted challenges posed by AAM, including the potential for direct or indirect discrimination based on protected characteristics and the risks associated with “neurosurveillance”.

IFOW says that the report is intended to ensure that vital areas that may otherwise fall between the Bills mentioned above are not missed and that the UK seizes the opportunity to lead globally in this area of safe and responsible AI.

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