Â鶹ӰÊÓ

Skip to main content

Canada should address AI's impact on worker rights, privacy: parliamentary report

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks at a module test board during a tour of IBM in Bromont, Que., Friday, April 26, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks at a module test board during a tour of IBM in Bromont, Que., Friday, April 26, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
Share
OTTAWA -

Artificial intelligence will have an impact on the Canadian labour force, a parliamentary committee recently heard, and MPs are suggesting ways the federal government can better prepare.

Witnesses described the "rapid pace" of AI technology being implemented, a new report says.

"While technological shifts can be disruptive, there are likely to be benefits, including for productivity and growth," a summary of the hearings reads.

But experts also "discussed the importance of addressing concerns for workers, businesses and the labour market in general before it is too late."

The House of Commons human resources committee says worker and privacy protections were identified as major concerns during the MPs' study on how AI could affect the Canadian labour force.

Its report is recommending the government assess whether federal labour legislation has the capacity to protect workers' rights as AI technology is adopted.

It's also calling for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada to look into how AI is affecting worker privacy and propose regulatory fixes to make sure Canadians are protected.

The report says MPs heard concerns about how AI technology can be used to monitor workers.

Artificial intelligence has turbocharged the use of employee surveillance technology, and experts have previously warned that Canadian laws aren't keeping up.

The report also says Employment and Social Development Canada should work on supporting ethical adoption of AI and invest in skills training to ensure the Canadian workforce can better adapt to new technology.

"Witnesses noted that employers should be required to train or retrain employees affected by the adoption of AI or provide them with opportunities to move to other positions," the report says.

In the last federal budget, the Liberal government set aside $50 million for skills retraining for workers affected by AI, though experts say a lot more funding will be needed given the scale of change the technology is set to trigger.

The committee is also pointing to a need for better data, saying Statistics Canada should develop a methodology for monitoring AI's impact on the labour market.

The report says the government should "undertake additional data collection to monitor the current and inevitable future impacts of AI technologies on the Canadian labour force."

It says the effects of AI on the world of work are still unclear, but "many agree that there will be significant shifts in how large portions of the workforce perform their daily tasks."

In June 2023, a briefing note for Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland warned the impact of generative AI "will be felt across all industries and around 40 per cent of all working hours could be impacted."

IN DEPTH

Opinion

opinion

opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster

A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?

opinion

opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

A body has been found in the vicinity where a woman went missing on the Ottawa River near Pembroke, Ont. while kayaking Tuesday night, according to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).

Unusual flippered feet are making their way into the Saint Lawrence River this weekend. Led by underwater explorer and filmmaker Nathalie Lasselin, volunteer divers are combing the riverbed near Beauharnois in Montérégie to remove hundreds of tires that have been polluting the aquatic environment for decades.

A man is facing numerous drug trafficking charges after Dufferin OPP seized a large assortment of drugs and weapons in Orangeville earlier this week.

Local Spotlight

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

Stay Connected