Technology that tracks your location at work and the time you害羞草研究所檙e spending in the bathroom. A program that takes random screenshots of your laptop screen. A monitoring system that detects your mood during your shift.

These are just some ways employee surveillance technology 害羞草研究所� now turbocharged, thanks to the explosive growth of artificial intelligence 害羞草研究所� is being deployed.

Canada害羞草研究所檚 laws aren害羞草研究所檛 keeping up, experts warn.

害羞草研究所淎ny working device that your employer puts in your hand, you can assume it has some way of monitoring your work and productivity,害羞草研究所� said Valerio De Stefano, Canada research chair in innovation law and society at York University.

害羞草研究所淓lectronic monitoring is a reality for most workers.害羞草研究所�

Artificial intelligence could also be determining whether someone gets, or keeps, a job in the first place.

Automated hiring is already 害羞草研究所渆xtremely widespread,害羞草研究所� with nearly all Fortune 500 companies in the United States using AI to hire new workers, De Stefano said.

Unlike traditional monitoring, he added, AI is making 害羞草研究所渁utonomous decisions about hiring, retention and discipline害羞草研究所� or providing recommendations to the employer about such decisions.

Employee surveillance can look like a warehouse worker with a mini-computer on their arm that害羞草研究所檚 tracking every movement they make, said Bea Bruske, president of the Canadian Labour Congress.

害羞草研究所淭hey害羞草研究所檙e building a pallet, but that particular mini-computer is tracking every single step, every flick of the wrist, so to speak,害羞草研究所� Bruske said.

害羞草研究所淭hey know exactly how many boxes are being placed on that pallet, how much time it害羞草研究所檚 taking, how many extra steps that worker might have taken.害羞草研究所�

There is little data documenting how widespread AI-powered worker surveillance might be in Canada. Unless employers are up front about their practices, 害羞草研究所渨e don害羞草研究所檛 necessarily know,害羞草研究所� Bruske said.

In a 2022 study by the Future Skills Centre, the pollster Abacus Data surveyed 1,500 employees and 500 supervisors who work remotely.

Seventy per cent reported that some or all aspects of their work were being digitally monitored.

About one-third of employees said they experienced at least one instance of location tracking, webcam or video recording, keystroke monitoring, screen grabs or employer use of biometric information.

害羞草研究所淭here is a patchwork of laws governing workplace privacy which currently provides considerable leeway for employers to monitor employees,害羞草研究所� the report noted.

Electronic monitoring in the workplace has been around for years. But the technology has become more intimate, taking on tasks like listening to casual conversations between workers.

It害羞草研究所檚 also become easier for companies to use and more customized to their specific needs 害羞草研究所� and more normalized, said McGill University associate professor Renee Sieber.

De Stefano said artificial intelligence has made electronic monitoring more invasive, since 害羞草研究所渋t is able to process much more data and is more affordable.害羞草研究所�

害羞草研究所淓mployer monitoring has skyrocketed害羞草研究所� since AI has been around, he added.

Those in the industry, however, insist there害羞草研究所檚 also a positive side.

Toronto-based FutureFit AI makes an AI-powered career assistant, which CEO Hamoon Ekhtiari said can help individuals navigate workplaces that are being rapidly changed by the technology.

AI can look for jobs, give career guidance, look for training programs or generate a plan for next steps. In the hiring process, it can give applicants rapid feedback about gaps in their applications, Ekhtiari said.

As artificial intelligence permeates Canadian workplaces, legislators are making efforts to bring in new rules.

The federal government has proposed Bill C-27, which would set out obligations for 害羞草研究所渉igh-impact害羞草研究所� AI systems.

That includes those dealing in 害羞草研究所渄eterminations in respect of employment, including recruitment, referral, hiring, remuneration, promotion, training, apprenticeship, transfer or termination,害羞草研究所� said Innovation Minister Fran莽ois-Philippe Champagne.

Champagne has flagged concerns AI systems could perpetuate bias and discrimination in hiring, including in who sees job ads and how applicants are ranked.

But critics have taken issue with the bill not explicitly including worker protections. It also won害羞草研究所檛 come into effect immediately, only after regulations implementing the bill are developed.

In 2022, Ontario began requiring employers with 25 or more employees to have a written policy describing electronic monitoring and stating for what purposes it can use that information.

Neither the proposed legislation nor Ontario law 害羞草研究所渁fford enough protection to workers,害羞草研究所� De Stefano said.

Activities like reading employee emails and time tracking are allowed, as long as the employer has a policy and informs workers about what害羞草研究所檚 happening, he added.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 good to know, but if I don害羞草研究所檛 have recourse against the use of these systems, some of which can be extremely problematic, well, the protection is actually not particularly meaningful.害羞草研究所�

Ontario has also proposed requiring employers to disclose AI use in hiring. If passed, it would make the province the first Canadian jurisdiction to implement such a law.

Provincial and federal privacy laws should offer some protections, in theory. But Canada害羞草研究所檚 privacy commissioners have warned that existing privacy legislation is woefully inadequate.

They said in October 害羞草研究所渢he recent proliferation of employee monitoring software害羞草研究所� has 害羞草研究所渞evealed that laws protecting workplace privacy are either out of date or absent altogether.害羞草研究所�

Watchdogs in other countries have been cracking down. In January, France hit Amazon with a $35-million fine for monitoring workers with an 害羞草研究所渆xcessively intrusive system.害羞草研究所�

The issue has also been on the radar for unions. The Canadian Labour Congress isn害羞草研究所檛 satisfied with Bill C-27, and employees and their unions have not been adequately consulted, Bruske said.

De Stefano said the government should 害羞草研究所渟top making the adoption of these systems the unilateral choice of employers害羞草研究所� and instead give workers a chance to be fully informed and express their concerns.

Governments should be aiming for something that distinguishes between monitoring performance and surveillance, putting bathroom-break timing in the latter category, Sieber added.

A case could be made to ban some technologies outright, such as 害羞草研究所渆motional AI害羞草研究所� tools that detect whether a worker in front of a computer screen or on an assembly line is happy, she said.

Emily Niles, a senior researcher with the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said AI systems run on information like time logs, the number of tasks completed during a shift, email content, meeting notes and cellphone use.

害羞草研究所淎I doesn害羞草研究所檛 exist without data, and it害羞草研究所檚 actually our data that it is running on,害羞草研究所� Niles said.

害羞草研究所淭hat害羞草研究所檚 a significant point of intervention for the union, to assert workers害羞草研究所� voices and control over these technologies.害羞草研究所�

Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press