Deluzio, Bonamici, Moylan Restart Push to Protect Workers from AI and Robot Bosses

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Chris Deluzio (PA-17), Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), and Congressman James Moylan (GU-AL) reintroduced legislation to protect workers from AI-based discrimination and strengthen transparency in management and hiring decisions. The No Robot Bosses Actwould fight back against discrimination from Artificial intelligence (AI)-based hiring tools by adding protections for job applicants and employees related to automated decision systems. The legislation also requires employers to train users on responsible system management and disclose when and how these systems are being used.

"It's the Wild West out there for AI, and Congress should not twiddle its thumbs. It's time to take up proposals that will protect the humanity and rights of workers," said Congressman Deluzio. "The No Robot Bosses Act would step in to put in place common-sense guardrails during the hiring, disciplinary, or firing processes, fighting back against the rising threat of misuse and abuse of AI technologies."

"As more companies rely on artificial intelligence to make hiring decisions, we must establish safeguards to protect workers from potential discrimination," said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. "There are numerous examples of flawed AI systems that produce biased outcomes for people of different backgrounds, especially for lower wage jobs. No one should be shut out of a future job because of a machine's decision. We must act now to keep the doors of opportunity open to all who are seeking employment."

"AI can improve the hiring process, but only if people can trust the systems behind it," said Congressman Moylan. "This bill strikes the right balance by encouraging innovation while putting commonsense safeguards in place so workers aren't disadvantaged by untested or biased algorithms. At the end of the day, human judgment still needs to guide employment decisions, ensuring that the hiring process remains rooted in transparency and accountability."

AI has advanced considerably even since the congressmembers first introduced this bill in 2024. While some states and municipalities are working hard to assess and regulate this technology, there is currently no federal policy that puts safeguards on AI in the workplace. This summer, Congressman Deluzio discussed this issue more broadly at an event with the Roosevelt Institute.

The No Robot Bosses Act:

• Prohibits employers from relying exclusively on an automated decision system when making employment-related decisions;
• Requires pre-deployment and periodic testing and validation of automated decision systems for issues such as discrimination and biases before such systems are used in employment-related decisions;
• Requires employers to train individuals or entities on the proper operation of automated decision systems;
• Mandates that employers provide independent, human oversight of automated decision system outputs before using the outputs to aid an employment-related decision;
• Requires timely disclosures from employers on the use of automated decision systems, the data inputs and outputs from these systems, and employee rights related to the decisions aided by these systems; and
• Establishes the Technology and Worker Protection Division at the Department of Labor to regulate the use of automated decision systems in the workplace.

A summary of the legislation can be found here. The full text can be found here.

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