November 27, 2024
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has published a tool to help employers use artificial intelligence in hiring without unintentional discrimination or barriers to employment. The new tool is called the “AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework.”
The Partnership on Employment and Accessible Technology (PEAT) published the AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework. In addition, the DOL’s Office of Disability Employment Policy funded PEAT’s efforts. According to the two organizations, the intention is to use this tool in the Biden administration’s “Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights.”
PEAT based the AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework on the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s AI Risk Management Framework. It also includes some optimal procedures for inclusive hiring. PEAT and DOL intended the blueprint to address how Artificial Intelligence (AI) could exacerbate biases in housing, employment, and more. As such, DOL also provided guidance for employers using AI tools in the workplace.
The new AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework has ten focus areas and related goals:
- Identify Legal Requirements: Employers should ensure they stay updated on any federal, state, or local regulations regarding the use of AI. They should also keep any sensitive or personally identifiable information private.
- Establish Staff Roles: Companies should choose and train staff following AI-related laws to obtain the maximum benefits of AI hiring technology while managing the risks. It is also essential that a diverse team deploys and uses AI technology.
- Inventory Technology: Some key practices involve developing policies and practices to inventory the technology, maintaining acceptable ways to use it, and defining the scope of use.
- Work with Vendors: Employers should have policies and procedures in place before purchasing AI technology. They should also ascertain third-party risks and prepare adequate third-party controls for using AI hiring technology.
- Assess Impacts: Determine AI hiring technology’s positive and negative impacts by working with experts, staff, and other involved parties.
- Provide Accommodations: Companies should develop a process that allows job seekers to request reasonable accommodations that the company can fulfill. Employers should consider obtaining feedback on the accommodations process.
- Use Explainable AI: Employers should collect information from vendors to understand how their AI technology works. Afterward, they should develop notices in plain language for external users explaining what the technology does and how your business will use it. This explanation allows users to ask for accommodations, obtain support, or request information about data privacy.
- Ensure Human Oversight: Ensure human oversight of policies, procedures, and guidelines for using the technology. Companies should track the accountability of these humans and ensure their oversight is effective.
- Manage Incidents: Create policies to deal with incidents and appeals concerning AI hiring technology. Businesses should also record, report, and manage any failures.
- Monitor Regularly: Companies must monitor their AI hiring technology’s performance and consider its trustworthiness and the risks of not complying with laws and regulations related to non-discrimination and accessibility.
Employers using or intending to use AI to make hiring decisions should review the AI and Inclusive Hiring Framework to ensure compliance. The best way to comply with laws and regulations related to employment screening is to partner with an experienced background check company.