Óscar Molina participates in the Ministry of Labour conference on AI, algorithms and decent employment

The Institute for Labour Studies (IET) was represented at the conference “El poder del trabajo en tiempos de algoritmos: reinventando el empleo digno”, organised by the Spanish Ministry of Labour and Social Economy in Madrid. The event brought together experts from a range of fields to discuss the impact of artificial intelligence, digitalisation and algorithmic management on the world of work, as well as the challenges these developments pose for labour rights and job quality.

Representing the IET, Óscar Molina, Director of the Institute and Professor in the UAB Department of Sociology, contributed to the conference with a presentation on how the introduction of algorithms and artificial intelligence systems is transforming working conditions and the organisation of work.

Molina stressed that these technologies are not neutral and that their impact depends largely on how they are implemented and on the institutional, regulatory and organisational frameworks that shape their use. He noted that while digitalisation can create opportunities for improvement, it can also bring risks such as work intensification, increased surveillance, loss of autonomy and new forms of inequality.

A key focus of his contribution was the need to strengthen worker participation and collective bargaining in digital transformation processes. He highlighted transparency in the use of algorithms and the involvement of social partners as essential to ensuring that technological innovation develops in line with the principles of decent work.

Óscar Molina’s participation in the conference reflects the IET’s commitment to the critical analysis of ongoing transformations in the world of work and to research that contributes to a better understanding of the social impact of digitalisation, artificial intelligence and new forms of labour governance.