The international congress ‘Artificial Intelligence in the world of work. Challenges for labour regulations and occupational risk prevention’ was held in the Faculty of Law and was attended by numerous experts in the field.

The international congress ‘Artificial Intelligence in the world of work: challenges for labour regulations and occupational risk prevention’, organised by the Chair for Collaborative Economy and Digital Transformation of the Universitat de València in collaboration with the Department of Labour and Social Security Law as part of the ALEXNE Project, was held on 20 and 21 June.

This congress aims to encourage a better dialogue between those responsible of the study and the management of new changes in the workplace that have emerged with the introduction of AI and algorithmic management and seeks to shed light on the rights that are most likely to be compromised, such as the right to non-discrimination, data protection, occupational health, privacy or neurorights.

In his opening speech, Professor Adrián Todolí, Co-Head of the Chair for Collaborative Economy and Digital Transformation and Co-Director of the congress, thanked the Organising Committee and the Scientific Committee, as well as the participation of the speakers and the support of the Department of Labour and Social Security Law.

Urgent research

Todolí commended the timely selection of the congress theme, given the current legislative changes in Europe. In addition, he emphasised the challenge faced by the congress speakers, who had to prepare their conferences against the clock due to the recent approval of the EU AI Act and also while the European Platform Work Directive is still in the final stages of its legislative process.

Also present at the opening of the congress was Juan Antonio Altés, Head of the UV’s Department of Labour and Social Security Law. He highlighted the Department’s ongoing and exemplary scientific activity, emphasising the relevance of the subject matter under discussion at the congress for the protection of labour rights. ‘It is our hope that this congress will serve as a forum for the clarification of ideas and the formulation of proposals that will enable us to address the challenges presented by technological innovation in the labour market and to work towards a fairer and safer future for all workers’, he concluded.

A programme packed with content

The congress sessions were held on 20 and 21 June 2024, with a diverse and intensive programme. The speakers from the UV and various Spanish and European universities delivered lectures on a range of topics, including transparency and data protection, neurotechnology, occupational hazards and responsibility in the use of AI. In addition, on the afternoon of 20 June, a discussion was held on union strategies and collective bargaining in the context of AI, followed by a productive discussion involving social partners.

Programme of the congress

On the same afternoon, the congress presentations were held in two classrooms of the Faculty of Law by UV university professors, doctoral students, young national and foreign doctors, civil servants from the Cuerpo de Inspectores de Trabajo y Seguridad Social and the General Treasury of the Social Security, and some unionists.

List of presentations

A challenge and an opportunity

The congress was closed by Silvia Parra Núñez, Head of the Provincial Inspectorate of Labour and Social Security of València. She expressed her gratitude and congratulations to the organisers, speakers and communicators for their ‘brilliant presentations and the success of their approaches through to very instructive days’. She noted that the presentations offered ‘very disturbing, highly inspiring, exciting and suggestive approaches’.

Parra highlighted that the ‘rapid progress in AI may have far-reaching consequences’, which can be understood as a ‘challenge’ but also as an ‘opportunity’.

The challenge lies in the necessity to adopt new research techniques in light of the technological changes that are forcing an inspection of the current research paradigm. In this regard, she emphasised the importance of maintaining a productive collaboration between academia and labour administration, given the necessity to devise new strategies to safeguard labour rights and enhance research and inspection in the face of technological progress.

However, AI is also an opportunity because, according to Parra, now ‘we have the opportunity to implement more effective and appropriate inspections’. AI allows for ‘automation of administrative processes without the direct intervention of civil servants’, basing on data mining, which is already provided for in the law but has not yet been implemented.

At the end of her speech, Silvia Parra emphasised the importance of maintaining a clear focus on the core objectives of inspection and research:

‘We have discussed algorithms, nanotechnology, AI… However, I believe that there is nothing more modern than continuing to demand compliance with labour and social security regulations. This implies compliance with the rights of workers, who represent the vast majority of the population in Spain, and implies complying with the right to decent and dignified work.’

Enjoy the congress again

The congress presentations were fully recorded and are freely available.

Playlist of the congress

Each session can also be viewed independently:

The 1^st part contains:

• Opening
• ‘Transparency and data protection obligations’ by Eva María Blázquez Agudo (UC3M)
• ‘Neurology, AI and neurorights’ by Ignasi Beltrán de Heredia Ruiz (UOC)

The 2^nd part contains:

• ‘New directive on digital platforms and AI’ by Adrián Todolí Signes (UV)
• ‘Technological control: video surveillance, biometric control and emotions’ by Ana Belén Muñoz Ruiz (UC3M) and Miguel Rodríguez-Piñero Royo (US)

The 3^rd part contains:

• ‘Union strategies and collective bargaining’ by María Luz Rodríguez Fernández (UCLM)
• Social stakeholders panel with Manuel Juliá (AVALNET), José Varela Ferrio (UGT) and M. Cruz Vicente Peralta (CC. OO.)

The 4^th part contains:

• ‘The relationship between AI regulation, platforms directive and labour regulations’ by Nastazja Potocka-Sione (Uni.lu)
• ‘Occupational risk prevention and AI’ by José Luis Goñi Sein (UPNA) and Beatriz Rodríguez Sanz de Galdeano (UPNA)

The 5^th part contains:

• ‘Processes of algorithmic selection and discrimination’ by Gemma Fabregat Monfort (UV) and Anna Ginés i Fabrellas (ESADE)

The 6^th part contains:

• ‘The system of responsibilities for the use of AI: AEPD, ITSS and AESIA" by Jesús Mercader Uguina (UC3M)
• ‘Automated sanctions by the labour inspection’ by José María Goerlich Peset (UV)
• Closure

You can see the posts of the congress on X with the hashtag #IATrabajo2024.