Artificial intelligence has many benefits for senior living and care operators, often making staff and administrators’ jobs easier and faster amid staffing shortages, in addition to technologies that make residents safer. It is not without dangers, however, as it is susceptible to fraud, patient record inaccuracies and fueling employment discrimination.
Thursday, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released guidance on preventing discrimination for companies, including healthcare and senior living organizations, that use AI to hire workers.
The EEOC’s new document is focused on preventing discrimination against job seekers and workers. The implications for the healthcare sector and nursing home providers and tech vendors are wide-ranging.
Senior living and nursing home employers increasingly use AI to help hire new employees, monitor performance and determine salary or promotions. Those technologies can include resume scanners that prioritize applications using certain keywords, employee monitoring software, virtual assistants or chatbots that reject applicants who don’t meet predefined requirements, and video interviewing software that evaluates candidates based on facial expressions and speech patterns.
Without proper safeguards in place, however, the use of AI technologies runs the risk of violating existing civil rights laws, the EEOC warned.
To help employers prevent the use of AI discriminating in the workplace, the EEOC’s new document offers more information on how to comply with Title VII, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion or sex.
Previously, the agency issued guidance for companies on how the use of AI in hiring could violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.
This is not the first federal crackdown on the potential pitfalls of AI. Last month, leaders from the EEOC, the Department of Justice, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission issued a joint statement warning against the dangers of AI. Citing its ability to “turbocharge fraud” and “automate discrimination,” the agencies pledged to more strictly monitor and regulate AI’s use.
