New York City’s anti-bias law, also known as NYC 144, will soon go into effect. It is another attempt to contend with possible artificial intelligence (AI) discrimination in the workplace.
In May 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued guidance, explaining that the time-honored four-fifths rule could be used to help employers determine if they were discriminating, although the EEOC explained that it wasn’t foolproof. This Employers Council article explains the four-fifths rule and its limitations in more detail.
NYC 144 was passed in 2021, and its original effective date of January 1, 2023, was delayed to July 5, 2023. It goes well beyond the EEOC guidance, requiring action on the employer’s part to use any AI tool in New York City. Employers will need to take two steps. The law states the following:
“In the city, it shall be unlawful for an employer or an employment agency to use an automated employment decision tool to screen a candidate or employee for an employment decision unless:
The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection adopted the final rule on April 6, 2023, and the requirements are complex. Software developers used it as an opportunity to create compliant tools, and if you Google “NYC AI Law,” three or four different sponsored software products appear.
While there is no such law in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Utah, or Wyoming at this point, one wonders if a similar law will be adopted in states and municipalities across the nation. The EEOC’s guidance is, by its own admission, only a rule of thumb. The EEOC also suggests that an analysis of the AI recruiting software may be completed using tools, including other software.