In a world where parsing through employment applications can feel like “finding a needle in a haystack,” employers are rapidly turning to artificial intelligence (AI) for assistance. While this does not signal the dawn of an age where robots completely take over the workforce, it does mean that AI has gained a foothold in the employment decision-making process.

The use of AI has many benefits, including increased efficiency in screening applicants, but reliance on AI also presents concerns that the algorithms used to do so could run afoul of federal anti-discrimination protections like Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act and similar state and local laws.

The rapid expansion of AI in employment decisions has fostered vigorous debate regarding the relative benefits and risks of AI, which has largely gone unregulated thus far. That may soon change.  The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has launched an agency-wide initiative to ensure that the use of AI complies with federal civil rights laws, and as part of that initiative, it held a public hearing on January 31, 2023, drawing testimony from a variety of experts in law, civil rights, computer science, data analytics, and employee and employer advocacy.

One thing is clear ­— federal, state, and local governments are beginning to take notice of the use of AI in employment decisions, and the first moves to regulate its use are underway.

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