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.
The German discounter Aldi Süd announced up to 500 job cuts due to a major reorganisation of its administrative structures at their headquarter in Mülheim an der Ruhr, where about 2,000 people are employed. The measures mainly affect accounting, human resources and procurement.
The company aims to consolidate tasks as part of its global IT project “Ahead” which is part of a worldwide strategy that has already led to job cuts in the US, the UK and Austria. Strategic functions are being shifted to Salzburg, while routine tasks are outsourced to external service providers.
According to the company, staff reductions will be carried out through attrition and voluntary agreements, without compulsory redundancies.
Aldi Süd is a discount retail company that was founded in 1961 following the division of the Albrecht brothers’ business into Aldi Süd and Aldi Nord. In Germany, Aldi Süd employs around 50,000 people and also operates internationally, where it is sometimes known under the brand name “Hofer”.
Eurofound (2026), Aldi Süd, Internal restructuring in Germany, factsheet number 204046, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/restructuring-events/detail/204046.