Terms of reference

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Employment, Education and Training will inquire into and report on the rapid development and uptake of automated decision- making and machine learning techniques in the workplace, with particular reference to:

1the benefits for productivity, skills development, career progression and job creation in Australia;

2the role of business software and regulatory technology ('Reg Tech') in improving regulatory compliance in the workplace relations system, including their use by regulators, and accountability for errors resulting in non-compliance;

3the risks, opportunities, and consequences for the nature of work, including effects on hiring, rostering, work intensity, job design, wage setting, monitoring, surveillance and job quality;

4the effects of these techniques on the scope of managerial prerogative, labour rights, ability for workers to organise, procedural fairness, equality, discrimination, and dignity at work;

5appropriate safeguards or regulatory interventions to guide responsible implementation in the workplace, including the digital skills and resources necessary for employers to appropriately utilise these technologies; and

6the effects on gender equality, job security, small businesses, Closing the Gap and disadvantaged and vulnerable cohorts of workers.