California Draft Regulations Would Curb Employer Use of Artificial Intelligence

A statement from Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Chair Charlotte Burrows in late October 2021 announced the employment agency's launch of an initiative to ensure artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging tools used in hiring and other employment decisions comply with federal civil rights laws. "The EEOC is keenly aware that [artificial intelligence and algorithmic decision-making] tools may mask and perpetuate bias or create new discriminatory barriers to jobs. We must work to ensure that these new technologies do not become a high-tech pathway to discrimination," Burrows said. The EEOC is not alone in its concerns about the use of AI, machine learning and related technologies in employment decision-making activities. On March 25, 2022, California's Fair Employment and Housing Council discussed draft regulations regarding automated-decision systems.