What to Know About AI Ethics in the Workplace in 2025 |

As AI continues to revolutionize workplaces, employers and employees must navigate the ethical landscape together. For employers, adopting AI with responsibility requires regular audits, transparent communication, and a commitment to fairness. For employees, staying informed about their rights and proactively advocating for ethical practices will help ensure AI is used in ways that benefit everyone. Ultimately, both play a vital role, and understanding the balance between innovation and responsibility is crucial as the workplace of tomorrow is shaped by AI-driven policies, decision-making processes, and practices. The key to successful AI adoption in the workplace will be balancing technological advances with the preservation of human dignity, fairness, and transparency.

As an employment law attorney, mediator, and legal commentator, my passion is providing clarity and guidance to bring employment law to light. By engaging in open dialogue, staying educated about AI’s potential and pitfalls, and committing to fairness, both employees and employers can foster an ethical and productive work environment. Here’s what to know about AI ethics in the workplace.

The Ethics of AI in the Workplace: A Growing Concern for Employers and Employees

AI technology offers immense potential for streamlining operations, improving productivity, and enhancing employee experiences. However, its ubiquitous and rapid integration raises important questions surrounding privacy, fairness, and transparency that impact everyone.

While employers navigate the need to adopt AI ethically, employees are rightfully concerned about how AI impacts their work, rights, and privacy. Let’s explore considerations for both parties.

What Employers Should Know About AI Ethics in the Workplace in 2025

For employers, there are three key considerations when successfully navigating the ethics of using AI in the workplace. From transparency in AI-assisted decision-making to respecting employee privacy, here is what to know

Transparency in AI Decisions

Employers increasingly rely on AI to make decisions about hiring, promotions, and even employee performance evaluations. One ethical issue that has emerged is the need for transparency. AI systems can sometimes be “black boxes,” meaning they are difficult to understand or explain.

However, one thing that has become abundantly clear is while AI is not inherently biased, it learns biases that can cause employers to make decisions that expose them to legal and reputational risks.

It’s important for employers to ensure their AI systems are explainable and transparent to employees, particularly when those systems influence their career progression. When employers communicate how they use AI in decision-making, this transparency helps maintain trust.

Bias and Discrimination Concerns

It’s important to reiterate that AI algorithms are trained on large datasets, and if those datasets are biased, AI systems can perpetuate or even exacerbate discriminatory practices. For example, AI might unknowingly favor candidates from certain demographics based on historical data.

To avoid unintentional discrimination, employers must ensure their AI systems are regularly audited for bias. For many employers, this will mean creating processes and an internal infrastructure that not only facilitates this but catches and resolves concerns before they snowball into larger issues.

AI models should be built and maintained with fairness in mind, and data used to train these models must be diverse and inclusive to ensure that decisions made by AI are fair to all employees and candidates. Creating a consistent auditing schedule could greatly help in this area.

Employee Privacy and Surveillance

AI-driven workplace tools, like employee monitoring software, can raise privacy concerns. Employers must tread carefully with the rise of AI-based surveillance tools that track productivity, keystrokes, or even employee emotions.

While AI can enhance efficiency and detect issues before they become problems, employers must establish clear boundaries and policies to protect employee privacy. Ethical AI use means being transparent about what data they are collecting, why they are collecting it, and how they will use it.

It is advisable to document and communicate to employees how they are using AI in this capacity. Maybe this means distributing a process document you update every year. Whatever the process is, it is crucial to ensure that employers do not unreasonably infringe on employee privacy.

Not only could this expose employers to legal consequences, but it builds trust between them and their employees.

What Employees Should Know About AI Ethics in the Workplace in 2025

For employees, on the other hand, it is crucial to understand their rights and protections. Here are four important ethical components of using AI in the workplace and what to know about them.

Transparency in AI-Assisted Decisions

It is advisable for employers to provide employees with a right to understand how employers are using AI in decisions that affect their careers. If an AI system is involved in hiring, firing, or performance reviews, employees must be informed about the criteria and processes behind these decisions.

AI shouldn’t remove human oversight, particularly when it comes to critical career decisions. It should be a tool that streamlines that process and makes it more efficient. Ensuring transparency is not only an ethical imperative but can also reduce the likelihood of biased outcomes.

If employees have any concerns about a lack of transparency in how AI is being used, it is important to voice them. Just as importantly, it is entirely reasonable to expect such transparency.

Potential for Bias and Unfair Treatment

As AI continues to play a role in recruitment, promotions, and day-to-day job tasks, employees must be aware of the potential for algorithmic bias.

As mentioned earlier, AI systems can reflect biases inherent in the data they are trained on. Employees should feel empowered to ask employers how their AI systems address diversity and inclusion, as well as whether these systems have been tested to ensure they treat everyone fairly.

Ensuring that AI systems promote equity and inclusivity will be essential for a harmonious workplace, and having insight into how AI is being used is crucial to ensuring employee rights are respected and protected.

The Impact on Job Security

With AI increasingly taking on more functions traditionally performed by humans, employees may worry about job displacement. While AI can enhance productivity, it can also lead to automation of roles, especially in fields like customer service, data entry, and certain manual labor tasks.

However, virtually every industry is going to be influenced by this technology. In this rapidly changing landscape, employees need to stay adaptable. Reskilling and upskilling initiatives, as well as clear communication about AI’s role in the workplace, will be key for both workers and employers.

It’s normal for employees to feel that AI is going to take their jobs. However, for employees, the onus is on them to adapt to these changes and learn how to integrate this technology into their workflow. Employees should reframe these concerns as learning opportunities for professional growth.

Protecting Privacy and Data

Employers should be mindful of how much personal data is being collected and how it’s being used by AI systems. Whether it’s through performance tracking software or AI tools that analyze behavior patterns, protecting personal privacy is essential.

Employers should provide employees with clear guidelines about their data rights and understanding of how their data is being used to avoid misuse or invasion of privacy. Employees also have the option of requesting this information from their employers.

Thought Leader, Media Personality, Professional Speaker, & Legal Commentator on AI Ethics in the Workplace

AI is here to stay, and understanding AI ethics in the workplace is essential to ensure this technology does not infringe on employees’ rights and that employers implement these innovative tools in a way that complies with employment law. This requires employers and employees to work together in harmony to create a more equitable future of work. I am an expert on all aspects of employment law with a passion for forecasting how AI will continue to shape the future of work, making me uniquely positioned and qualified to provide expert insight and analysis on all employment law issues. These issues can be complex, so you need a seasoned legal professional to shed light on them. My passion is being a beacon in uncertain times of transition that provides that light.

Employment Law Thought Leader & Professional Speaker on AI Ethics in the Workplace, Employment Law Trends, and Breaking Employment Law News

It is essential to understand how to navigate the sometimes choppy waters of AI ethics in the workplace. By understanding these key considerations, both employers and employees can work together to navigate the new employment landscape being shaped by this innovative technology. I am a former employment and labor law attorney turned mediator, ADR, and conflict resolution specialist who believes it is imperative to stay current with groundbreaking changes to employment law for employees and employers alike. My passion is educating the general public on recent developments in employment law and the workplace trends that impact them as a thought leader and legal commentator. As such, I am uniquely qualified to address the issue of discussing politics in the workplace. My more than 20 years of experience as a media legal analyst and contributor led to my radio show on Tavis Smiley’s KBLA Talk 1580, “Legal Lens with Angela Reddock.” I also am a regular speaker and blogger on employment law and issues related to the workplace.

Also, learn more about my book – The Workplace Transformed: 7 Crucial Lessons from the Global Pandemic – here – https://angelareddock-wright.com/book/.

To follow and stream my Legal Lens Podcast, visit here – The Legal Lens Podcast.

For media inquiries, please reach out to josh@kwsmdigital.com.

For more information regarding mediation and dispute resolution resources for both employees and employers, let’s connect on LinkedIn for new updates, or contact me here. You may also follow me on Instagram.

This communication is not legal advice. It is educational only. For legal advice, consult with an experienced employment law attorney in your state or city.