In the nearly four years since Joe Biden took office as president in 2021, breakthroughs in artificial intelligence (AI) have become widely available and are helping to improve hiring, hiring, promotion, employee evaluation, and other employment issues. It offers the potential to revolutionize related decision-making and processes. As the country prepares for the second Trump administration and employers are increasingly interested in adopting and using AI tools, one of the questions on employers’ minds is: So what can you expect in terms of regulation?
The Biden administration has focused on regulating AI in general and employment applications in particular, primarily by issuing non-binding guidance and clarifying enforcement priorities with respect to already enacted laws such as Title VII and U.S. law. We took a careful and deliberate approach to doing so. Based on the Act on Persons with Disabilities. The linchpin of this approach was an October 2023 executive order that outlined the administration’s “Comprehensive Strategy for Responsible Innovation.” As it relates to employers and developers of AI tools for employers, the strategy includes developing “principles and best practices to reduce the harms and maximize the benefits of AI to workers” and “algorithmic It included “guiding government agencies to combat discrimination caused by discrimination.”
While it is difficult to predict exactly what the incoming Trump administration will do in this area, there is hope that these efforts will be eased. The Republican platform pledged to repeal the executive order, calling it “dangerous” and “stymieing AI innovation and imposing radical leftist ideas on the development of this technology.” The platform also expressed support for “AI development rooted in free speech and human flourishing,” suggesting a more laissez-faire approach to AI regulation. With Republicans also holding majorities in the House and Senate, federal legislation regulating the use of AI tools by employers seems unlikely.
If the Trump administration takes a hands-off approach as expected, regulation of AI employment tools will likely continue (or accelerate) at the state and local level. Colorado, New York City, and Illinois have already passed laws in recent years regulating the use of AI in employment decisions. Key features of these laws include disclosures about the use of AI (both to the public and affected individuals) and audit requirements for automated decision-making tools aimed at identifying and mitigating algorithmic bias. Included. Similar laws have been introduced in other state legislatures, and could proliferate once it becomes clear that comprehensive federal regulations will not be enacted and lawmakers become more knowledgeable about AI issues. .
We will monitor how the legal situation develops under the new administration and continue to report on developments in AI that impact employers.
