Empowering Inclusive AI in Recruitment: Understanding the New DOL Guidelines
Nov 22, 2024DOL Publishes the “AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework”Guidelines
A resource for employers who deploy AI recruitment and hiring technology
One of the fundamental and common concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) is the potential for bias introduced by AI algorithms and underlying data. The federal government is particularly worried about introducing such bias in the recruitment and hiring process.
President Biden’s Executive Order 14091, signed in February 2023, launched a massive regulatory effort, directing agencies across the government to immediately begin working on best practices and regulations to promote AI safety, cybersecurity, privacy, fairness, and competition. The federal Department of Labor (DOL), working with its Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), a private nonprofit organization, Partnership on Employment and Accessible Technology (PEAT), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and others, has recently published a resource — AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework (the Framework)— which informs and supports inclusive AI practices in the recruitment and hiring process.
It’s for employers
In the press release announcing the Framework’s publication, the DOL states that the primary audience for the resource is “employers who deploy artificial intelligence (AI) hiring technology.” The resource echoes in substance and tone the DOL’s AI Principles and Best Practices publication and President Biden’s Executive Order.
The Framework—like other AI-related resources and communications that have emerged from the Biden Administration in the past few years—urges the implementation of AI with human oversight and in an “ethical, transparent manner that is understandable to employees and job applicants.” These documents clearly emphasize employee rights.
The AI Framework consists of ten focus areas:
- identify employment and accessibility legal requirements;
- establish staff roles, responsibilities, and training;
- inventory and classify technology;
- develop policies and procedures for working with vendors;
- assess positive and negative impacts;
- create a process for providing accommodations;
- understand and explain AI;
- ensure human oversight;
- manage incidents regarding AI technology failures; and
- monitor regularly.
Each focus area includes descriptions of practices, goals, and activities that employers are encouraged to adopt in AI governance and disability-inclusive hiring practices.
Employers do not need to implement “every practice, goal, and activity at once;” rather, the Framework is a “progressive effort and will evolve over time as your organization’s AI operation grows.”
What now?
The AI Framework does not have the force of law and is intended as a guide for employers implementing AI in the workplace. As regulators everywhere grapple with the impact of AI and, in the workplace specifically, continue to explore balancing efficiency and costsavings with the risk of algorithmic bias, the AI Framework likely will be a relied-upon resource for those policy debates.
Similarly, for employers, the AI Framework stands out in the tsunami of information currently being published by the government about AI issues. It can be a helpful starting place for employers wishing to take advantage of AI technology while minimizing legal risk. If you have any questions or concerns about the development and use of AI in your business, don’t hesitate to contact Orr & Reno for assistance.
