WATCHED OVER BY MACHINES: AI AND SURVEILLANCE AT WORK
In 2020, hundreds of millions of office workers deserted their employers’ premises and installed themselves at makeshift desks in their homes. Many are still there. Workplace closure measures remain in effect in most parts of the world.1 In the European Union, more than 40 percent of the labour force have been working from home full-time. In a survey conducted by Eurofound, an agency of the EU, 44 percent of respondents said they would like to continue working from home daily or several times a week, if given the choice.2 Some observers estimate the global share of permanent remote workers to reach 34 percent in 2021.3
Remote working is not a new idea. Firms in the financial and professional services sectors have been consolidating, compressing and reducing office space for almost twenty years in an attempt to lower costs. In 2020, technology firms, which provide the information and communication tools that make flexible workplace models possible, were among the first to advocate a continuation of the practice. In May, the
