Automated monitoring in the workplace:the devolution of recognition

This afterword situates the phenomenon of “bossware” within the current tendency of automation to facilitate processes of “social recession.” This latter term refers to the ways in which recent developments in media technology facilitate tracking and monitoring at a distance. Remote work and the gig economy demonstrate how these technologies promise to reconfigure the firm in ways that reinforce broader logics of casualization and subcontracting that characterize “flexible” accumulation. Managing large-scale, flexible, distanced employment requires automated forms of recognition that now stand in for faceto-face relationships in the workplace. As in the case of the consumer-facing side of the online economy, social recession does not eliminate sociality but runs it through platforms that automatically collect and process interaction data. The result is what this article describes as the “devolution” of recognition—increasingly associated with automated forms of biometric identification and tracking.</p

Remote Work, Work Measurement and the State of Work Research in Human-Centred Computing

Over the past few decades, a small but growing group of people have worked remotely from their homes. With the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, millions of people found themselves joining this group overnight. In this position paper, we examine the kinds of work that ‘went remote’ in response to the pandemic, and consider the ways in which this transition was influenced by (and in turn came to influence) contemporary trends in digital workplace measurement and evaluation. We see that employers appeared reluctant to let certain classes of employee work remotely. When the pandemic forced staff home, employers compensated by turning to digital surveillance tools, even though, as we argue, these tools seem unable to overcome the significant conceptual barriers to understanding how people are working. We also observed that, in the United Kingdom context, the pandemic didn’t mean remote work for a significant proportion of the population. We assert that, to maximize its impact, ‘future of work’ research in human-centred computing must be more inclusive and representative of work, rather than focusing on the experiences of knowledge workers and those involved in new forms of work

Home—The Final Frontier: Why Privacy Means Protecting Workers\u27 Rights to Time and Space

This article critiques the failure of current privacy frameworks to protect workers—especially teleworkers—from the growing encroachment of employer surveillance into their homes. It argues that prevailing privacy regimes, including notice-and-choice models and the GDPR, inadequately address the systemic power asymmetries in the employment relationship, often enabling rather than restricting invasive monitoring. Drawing from labor law traditions, the authors propose a rights-centered framework that views time and space as essential for human dignity and autonomy. They call for a non-negotiable floor of protections, including surveillance-free periods, bans on data commodification, and the establishment of an enforcement inspectorate. By reframing privacy not as a transactional good but as a fundamental labor right, the article advocates for pragmatic legal reforms that counteract the exploitation of home-based workers in a data-driven economy

Workplace Datafication that Serves the Workers

In this response to Nyman et al. (2024), I argue that workplace datafication is an important topic where trade unions can be a central actor. Not just “bossware” made for surveillance of workers, but also ordinary information systems generate data, which it is important that are used responsibly. While I think trade unions can draw inspiration from the Scandinavian tradition, I also argue that we need to adjust the frames and vocabulary. While the conflict between labour and capital is still present, there are also a broader set of tensions between human welfare agendas and what we may call “techno-rational” or “techno-economic” agendas. I end with recommending that researchers seek to collaborate with trade unions on data-driven labour organizing to build awareness on both the potential for misuse of data as well as for ‘data innovations’ that can support them in their work

Opportunities and challenges of using workforce big data: Insights from a mixed methods study on flexible working

This Practice and Policy paper presents reflections on the opportunities and challenges of using a novel big data set, Microsoft 365 digital activity records, in a mixed method study of flexible working. Our experience identified methodological and ethical considerations for practitioners and researchers in public sector workforce analytics. The benefits include data captured in situ and over time for all employees. The limitations reflect the inadequacy of big data for representing the complexity of organisational behaviour and the need to accompany data collection with systems ensuring employee privacy and consent for the use of data not originally recorded for research or evaluation purposes. It contributes to knowledge through providing insights into what public sector big data sets contain and how such data can be accessed, interpreted, and used in workforce decision-making. Points for practitioners: Digital activity records are a useful form of big data for public sector workforce analytics. Digital activity records can support the identification of potential risks within the workforce such as social isolation and excessive work hours. Big data must be contextualised with qualitative or other additional data to interpret data patterns and generate meaningful implementation insights. Privacy and consent processes may require revision to fully utilise workforce big data

Роль аффиксации в пополнении словарного состава англоязычного компьютерного лексикона

Дослідження присвячене вивченню афіксації як ефективного засобу розширення англомовного комп’ютерного лексикону. Встановлено, що афіксація є одним із найбільш продуктивних методів словотвору, посідаючи друге місце за кількістю нових слів після словоскладання: за допомогою афіксації було створено більш ніж 300 (26%)«комп’ютерно маркованих» лексичних одиниць. У процесі творення дериватів залучаються як загальновідомі«старі» суфікси і префікси, так і відносно «нові» дериваційні елементи, наприклад, напівафікси та комбінаційні форми. Найбільш продуктивними афіксами виявились наступні «старі» суфікси: -er, -ing, -able, -ism (infostealer,computer-doping, rollable, textavism), а також префікси de- та anti- (de-influencing, anti-haul).Значну роль у творенні складних слів комп’ютерного лексикону відіграє аналогія. Продуктивними у творенні похідних у комп’ютерному лексиконі виявилися «нові» словотвірні елементи -speak, -ware, -intensive (algospeak, bossware, graphics-intensive), які вперше з’явилися саме в межах комп’ютерного лексикону завдяки афіксалізації відповідних лексем. Широко використовуються дериваційні засоби, утворені внаслідок афіксалізації грецьких і латинських слів super-, micro-, multi- (supercloud, microdelivery) і скорочень cyber-, info-, tele-, e- (teletherapy,e-skin), спостерігається дія комплексного механізму створення афіксів, який включає скорочення лексичних одиниць з подальшою їх афіксалізацією. Виникнення нових афіксів засвідчує наявність взаємозв`язків між різними способами словотвору, чимало нових «комп’ютерно маркованих» напівафіксів виникає на базі складних слів, телескопійних утворень, скорочень, що підтверджує думку лінгвістів про комплексно-системну природу словотворення. Дослідження з’ясувало важливу роль афіксації в формуванні нової «комп’ютерно маркованої» лексики та допоможе краще зрозуміти процеси словотворення в комп’ютерному лексиконі та сприятиме його подальшому розвитку.This study focuses on affixation as a powerful tool for enriching the computer lexis. Among various word formation methods, affixation ranks second only to compounding in terms of productivity. It proves to be a driving force behind the creation of over 300 (26%) “computer-marked” lexical units. Notably, both “old” suffixes and prefixes, rooted in the English language, and relatively “new” derivational elements such as semi-affixes and combinatorial forms, play a pivotal role in the formation of derivatives. This dynamic blend of traditional and innovative elements further demonstrates the versatility of affixation as a word-forming mechanism, and the complex and systemic nature of word formation in computer lexis, where creativity and innovation continuously shape language evolution.Исследование посвящено изучению аффиксации как эффективного средства пополнения англоязычного компьютерного лексикона. Установлено, что аффиксация является одним из наиболее продуктивных методов словообразования, занимая второе место по количеству новых слов после словосложения: с помощью аффиксации было создано более 300 (26%) «компьютерно маркированных» лексических единиц. В процессе создания дериватов привлекаются как общеизвестные «старые» суффиксы и префиксы, так и относительно «новые» деривационные элементы, например, полуаффиксы и комбинационные формы. Наиболее продуктивными аффиксами оказались следующие «старые» суффиксы: -er, -ing, -able, -ism (infostealer,computer-doping, rollable, textavism), а также префиксы de- и anti-(de-influencing, anti-haul) .Значительную роль в создании сложных слов компьютерного лексикона играет аналогия. Производительными в создании производных в компьютерном лексиконе оказались «новые» словообразовательные элементы -speak, -ware, -intensive (algospeak, bossware, graphics-intensive), впервые появившиеся именно в пределах компьютерного лексикона благодаря аффиксализации соответствующих лексем. Широко используются деривационные средства, образованные вследствие аффиксализации греческих и латинских слов super-, micro-, multi- (supercloud, microdelivery) и сокращений cyber-, info-, tele-, e- (teletherapy, e-skin), наблюдается действие комплексного механизма создание аффиксов, включающего сокращение лексических единиц с последующей их аффиксацией. Возникновение новых аффиксов свидетельствует о наличии взаимосвязей между разными способами словообразования, немало новых «компьютерно маркированных» полуаффиксов возникает на базе сложных слов, телескопических образований, сокращений, что подтверждает мнение лингвистов о комплексно-системной природе словообразования. Исследование выяснило важную роль аффиксации в формировании новой «компьютерно маркированной» лексики и поможет лучше понять процессы словообразования в компьютерном лексиконе и будет способствовать дальнейшему его развитию

Through a Glass Darkly: How Securities Disclosures Give a Distorted View of the Economy

Our understanding of the American economy often relies on stylized facts derived from mandatory disclosures by listed corporations. Data vendors like Standard & Poor’s vacuum up 10Ks and proxy statements into databases, and scholars distill these into tentative maps. This may have been adequate for a postwar economy centered on asset-heavy manufacturers, but it is increasingly out of step with an information-based economy. Companies listed on the stock market are fewer in number and less representative than they were, light in tangible assets and people, and heavy on IP. Basic facts such as what industry they are in are increasingly perplexing, which renders standard economic statistics such as industry concentration misleading. Most of the companies going public in recent years are perpetual money-losers in biotech and “software.” And we know next to nothing about their “human capital,” in spite of updates to Regulation S-K. This Article will show how the evolution of corporate disclosures affects how interested parties interpret the data the disclosures produce, how those interpretations obfuscate our understandings of modern corporations in a data-driven economy, and how we can establish interpretations of corporate data that faithfully portray the modern economy

Remote work, work measurement, and the state of work research in human-centred computing

Over the last few decades, a small but growing group of people have worked remotely from their homes. With the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, millions of people found themselves joining this group overnight. In this position paper, we examine the kinds of work that 'went remote' in response to the pandemic, and consider the ways in which this transition was influenced by (and in turn came to influence) contemporary trends in digital workplace measurement and evaluation. We see that employers appeared reluctant to let certain classes of employee work remotely. When the pandemic forced staff home, employers compensated by turning to digital surveillance tools, even though, as we argue, these tools seem unable to overcome the significant conceptual barriers to understanding how people are working. We also observed that, in the United Kingdom context, the pandemic didn't mean remote work for a significant proportion of the population. We assert that, to maximise its impact, 'future of work' research in Human-Centred Computing must be more inclusive and representative of work, rather than focusing on the experiences of knowledge workers and those involved in new forms of work

EMOTION RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGIES AND DIGNITY IN AI-BASED SURVEILLANCE CAPITALISM

Businesses, governments and other entities are increasingly presentedwith AI-based ‘emotion recognition’ biometric systems, promoted as toolsoffering robust insights into the honesty, comprehension or health supportneeds of individuals, particularly students and employees. Australianuniversities may consider adopting this technology as they expand their AIengagement in learning/assessment platforms and student supportsystems. Automated emotion recognition systems pose legal and humanrights challenges arising from their potential to be used deterministically;their potential lack of reproducibility, replicability and validity; and theirsusceptibility to bias, notwithstanding their possible utility. Further, theyrely on non-consensual or co-opted participation of individuals whosedignity is eroded by consequent reduction from persons to data subjects.This article evaluates such systems through a dignitarian human rightslens, highlighting the need for a precautionary approach