ICYMI: Watch CWA Town Hall on Artificial Intelligence

Last week, CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. and the CWA Advisory Committee on Artificial Intelligence hosted a town hall meeting for CWAers to discuss the ways AI technologies are impacting our jobs and how we can protect the dignity of our work in the AI age.

“CWA members and leaders do not accept that the effects of AI systems are inevitable or predetermined,” said President Cummings. “What we’ve learned in our decades of worker advocacy is simple: workers impacted by technology must guide how it is implemented. Otherwise, you risk technology being turned into a weapon by which the wealthy one percent hold on to power while impoverishing the rest of us.”

A recording of the town hall is available to watch here.

Mike Barfield, from CWA District 9, shared how a request for information during bargaining uncovered new uses of AI at AT&T that had been hidden from members, including the use of AI to do work previously done by members and using AI to change members’ task assignments. Barfield told CWAers, “We don’t just bargain for the here and now; we bargain for the future as well. And AI has the potential to greatly impact our jobs over time.”

Dorian Barranco, a member of the NewsGuild of New York (TNG-CWA Local 31003), spoke to how the use of AI at Business Insider is devaluing the work of union journalists. When Business Insider ran an article with an AI byline without notifying the Guild, Barranco and their coworkers mobilized to take collective action to stand up for their rights at work.

Renee Rouser, a member of the CWA Advisory Committee on AI, shared resources created by the committee, including fact sheets, a compilation of existing contract language on AI, a policy toolkit, case studies, webinars, and more. Rouser encouraged attendees, saying, “Together, we can make sure that worker voices are heard when decisions are made about implementing AI.”

“We will continue to fight tooth and nail at the bargaining table for the very best deals possible for our members,” promised President Cummings.

AI tools and resources are accessible to local union officers and staff through Aptify.

---

This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.