Amid ongoing staff reductions at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) in Ontario, some employees receiving layoff notices, along with their union, are expressing concerns about the organization’s integration of artificial intelligence (AI).
The Ontario Compensation Employees Union (OCEU), representing WSIB workers, disclosed the job cuts earlier this month. A total of 566 individuals, both unionized and non-unionized employees, were impacted, as stated by OCEU president Harry Goslin in an interview with CBC News last week.
One of the affected employees, Brittnee Gauthier, a post-adjustment case manager in Sudbury, mentioned that WSIB had been actively promoting the adoption of a new AI claim summary tool to analyze and condense documents before the layoffs occurred.
Expressing her thoughts on the matter, Gauthier stated, “I can only assume that AI will be the future for this company.” She further added, “I believed AI could be beneficial. We were all enthusiastic about the new tool until we learned it was rendering us redundant. So, I am concerned about who might be next.”
President Goslin of the union expressed worries about how WSIB would manage claims moving forward, suggesting that the job cuts were primarily aimed at automating tasks.
In response to the layoffs, WSIB described them as a “challenging business decision.” The organization emphasized its commitment to modernizing operations to provide optimal assistance to individuals while ensuring value for the premiums paid by Ontario businesses.
Records from WSIB revealed a $7.3 million contract awarded to Owl.co in February for a “claims summary tool subscription.” In October, WSIB CEO Jeff Lang is slated to discuss the deployment of AI on a large scale at a conference in Las Vegas alongside Owl.co CEO Sean Merat.
When questioned by CBC News about the correlation between the AI tools implementation and the recent layoffs, WSIB highlighted its longstanding use of technology to streamline administrative processes, enabling staff to focus more on aiding individuals in their recovery and return to work.
Employees who were laid off reported being informed via a brief group call with numerous others, leaving them with numerous uncertainties. Gauthier expressed her distress at the news, having left a decade-long career to join WSIB, and expressed concerns about the impact on injured workers.
Gauthier revealed that she currently faces a workload of over 200 claims and is rushing to process them to prevent delays in assistance to claimants.
Addressing the potential effects on injured workers, Goslin mentioned that decisions should be based on the merits of each case as stipulated by legislation. He voiced concerns about potential service reductions for claimants due to AI implementation.
Sanjeev Kapoor, a WSIB customer service representative in Sudbury affected by the layoffs, shared how his family was worried about their future following the job loss. Kapoor expressed his belief that the layoffs might not be over and criticized WSIB for what he perceived as forcing AI on employees.
Kapoor disclosed that employees were instructed to train an AI system by verifying its responses and ensuring the accuracy of policy numbers and dates. He expressed frustration over training AI to replace their roles, citing instances of incorrect policy numbers provided by the AI. Goslin also highlighted complaints from other employees regarding the accuracy and reliability of WSIB’s AI tools.
WSIB did not provide on-the-record responses regarding the accuracy of its AI tools or potential use of other AI programs. The union raised concerns about the lack of transparency regarding technological changes and has initiated freedom of information requests.
WSIB, funded by individual businesses rather than tax dollars, operates as a provincial Crown corporation under the oversight of the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training, and Skills Development while maintaining operational independence.
