Ethics in the digital workplace
Digitisation and automation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), can affect working conditions in a variety of ways and their use in the workplace raises a host of new ethical concerns.
Esprit, an Hong-Kong based multinational clothes retailer has announced it will be closing its own stores across Belgium. In total 15 stores will be closing leading to 148 employees at risk of losing their job. The stores that work in franchise are not affected by the closures and will remain open (10 in total).
The company management states that the global market has created competition to the extent that it is no longer viable to keep the stores open. Another reason that was given are the rising energy costs, these leads to excessive costs for the company.
Eurofound (2024), Esprit, Internal restructuring in Belgium, factsheet number 201077, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/201077.