A new report, produced by the John Curtin Research Centre and backed by the SDA, Australia's largest retail and fast-food union, warns that unchecked artificial intelligence (AI) risks intensifying worker surveillance, unsafe workloads, and job insecurity, directly enabling companies to turn AI adoption into greater profit.
Co-author Dominic Meagher stated that companies working with their workforce are able to turn AI adoption into more profit, emphasizing that AI is significantly more powerful than social media.
The report calls for a national AI taskforce, a review of the Fair Work Act to address AI-related workplace risks, and mandatory human oversight of AI at work.
It also recommends an AI expert advisory panel within the Fair Work Commission to help assess AI-related disputes and ensure existing workplace protections continue to apply.
Researchers stressed that employers must consult with workers and unions before AI is deployed and that there should be universal access to AI education and skills.
Dr. Meagher warned that Australia does not have the luxury of getting AI regulation wrong this time, asserting that just because AI makes a decision, it does not excuse a company from sidestepping its obligations to workers' rights.
Capital's New Tools
Notion Digital Forensics managing director Matt O'Kane confirmed that most employers already monitor staff for cybersecurity or cyber insurance purposes, citing Microsoft Office 365 as an example.
O'Kane noted the adoption of more "intrusive" international tools in Australia capable of monitoring on-screen activity and keystrokes.
He reported incidents through Fair Work where companies have gone "over the line," turning staff laptops into covert listening devices while employees worked from home.
O'Kane highlighted a "huge trend" for technology vendors to introduce AI, acknowledging its capacity to boost productivity, but questioned whether such monitoring would be acceptable if managed by a person.
He warned against importing technology from overseas with different workplace cultures without thoroughly considering its reasonable deployment in Australia.
O'Kane emphasized that while there is a limit to human monitoring, there are typically no limits to AI monitoring.
Workplace relations and safety lawyer Shannon Chapman stated there is no national, overarching piece of legislation dealing with AI in the workplace.
Chapman described the legal framework for implementing biometrics data scanners as complex and jurisdiction-specific, depending on the type, storage, and use of data.
She noted that several federal laws, including anti-discrimination, human rights, and the Fair Work Act, must be considered.
Chapman suggested that new AI-related employee rights would not be simple and could complicate the legal landscape, creating practical challenges for employers to follow the rules.
The State's Response
Workplace Relations Minister Amanda Rishworth announced that the Albanese government conducted a workforce "gap analysis" into the effects of AI on jobs.
Preliminary government results indicate AI has slowed growth in some occupations like filing clerks and keyboard operators, but suggest the overall mix of jobs has not changed faster than usual.
These results also suggest positive employment outcomes for young tertiary graduates, countering fears of them being early casualties of AI.
The government is developing capabilities to monitor AI impacts by analyzing changes in the labor market since ChatGPT's launch in November 2022, focusing on entry-level jobs and workforce composition.
Minister Rishworth stated that a forum comprising government, employers, and unions would meet for the first time today to examine "key themes" in AI adoption: trust, capability, transparency, safety, and productivity.
She said these themes would shape discussions to build common understanding and translate into agreed outcomes, without detailing immediate regulatory action.
Chapman underscored the importance for employers to have fundamental policies, procedures, and contract terms addressing AI use and consequences for breaches.
Labor's Demands
Dr. Meagher reiterated that the report is not anti-innovation but calls for clear regulations laid out in a national strategy, with workers at the center.
He stressed that Australia has spent a long time building a "pretty fair place" and should not "just sidestep it because new technology comes along."
Meagher likened the advent of AI to discovering alien life within computers, stating it will be the biggest change of all and must lift up everyone.