Bernie Hall, Director of the United Steelworkers District 10, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to talk about how the USW is handling the increasing role of artificial intelligence in the workplace. Hall also discussed examples of how AI is being used now and how the Union is preparing for the future.
For the USW, AI isn’t a new topic in the workplace. Many member jobs and tasks have incorporated working with AI for years. The Union feels that AI implementation is an opportunity for improving workplace efficiency, but a challenge to ensure proper usage. The need to provide a work environment that allows employees to compete in a global market is a significant reason the labor movement should embrace AI, Hall said.
The USW is ready to accept any smart and responsible implementations of AI in the workforce, and there are already several examples of successful implementations, Hall said. In manufacturing, machine learning-powered by AI has been at the forefront of predictive maintenance, ensuring all operations run efficiently. Production lines use AI to assist in the quality control and assurance processes, providing workers with alerts of faults in the product. With proper implementation, workers' jobs will become easier over time and they won’t be replaced in the process.
The USW feels they have an advantage with their early adoption of AI in the workplace. By utilizing Collective Bargaining Agreements, workers can protect themselves from any loss of jobs to AI. Artificial intelligence is a worker-assisted technology and not a worker-replacement technology, Hall said. Ensuring a proper training program to upscale the workforce to meet the demands of implementing AI will be vital to protecting the future of good union jobs.
Listen to the entire episode to learn more.