Two federal agencies have warned that the use of artificial intelligence hiring software may break disability discrimination rules, The Wall Street Journal reported May 12.
Both the Justice Department and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said that companies must be careful when using the tech.
Many companies utilize machine learning tools to help whittle down candidate pools much faster than it would take a human. Some AI tools listen in on interviews and guess a candidate's temperament and personality or summarize the points made. The EEOC argues that this may exclude those with conditions such as depression, autism or speech impediments.
"We are sounding an alarm regarding the dangers tied to blind reliance on AI and other technologies that we are seeing increasingly used by employers," Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general at the Justice Department’s civil-rights division, said in a press conference. "As technology continues to rapidly advance, so too must our enforcement efforts to ensure that people with disabilities are not marginalized and left behind in the digital world."