Changes from plenary report to adopted text

The European Parliament,

– having regard to Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

– having regard to Articles 153 and 16 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

– having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Legal Affairs on the proposed legal basis,

– having regard to the Commission President’s political guidelines of 18 July 2024 entitled ‘Europe’s Choice – Political Guidelines for the Next European Commission 2024-2029’,

– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular Article 7 on respect for private and family life, Article 8 on protection of personal data, and Article 31 on fair and just working conditions,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 5 March 2025 on “The Union of Skills”,

– having regard to Council Directive 89/391/EEC of 12 June 1989 on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health of workers at work,

– having regard to Directive 2002/14/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2002 establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the European Community - Joint declaration of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on employee representation,

– having regard to Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time,

– having regard to Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation,

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/1152 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union,

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2019/1158 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on work-life balance and carers and repealing Council Directive 2010/18/EU,

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2024/2831 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2024 on improving working conditions in platform work (the ‘Platform Work Directive’),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No 300/2008, (EU) No 167/2013, (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139 and (EU) 2019/2144 and Directives 2014/90/EU, (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Artificial Intelligence Act),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation),

– having regard to its resolution of 11 May 2023 on a roadmap towards a social Europe– two years after the Porto Social Summit (2023/2586(RSP)),

– having regard to its resolution of 13 March 2025 on social and employment aspects of restructuring processes: the need to protect jobs and workers’ rights (2024/2829(RSP)),

– having regard to its resolution of 11 March 2025 on the European Social Fund Plus post-2027 (2024/2077(INI)),

– having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on “Pro-worker artificial intelligence” (SOC/803),

– having regard to the European Social Partners’ Framework Agreement on Digitalisation (June 2020),

– having regard to the communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 7 June 2023, on a comprehensive approach to mental health,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 29 January 2025 entitled “A competitiveness Compass for the EU”,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 11 February 2025 entitled “Moving forward together: A Bolder, Simpler, Faster Union”, confirming the target to reduce administrative burdens with 25 % for companies and 35 % for SMEs,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 9 April 2025 entitled “AI Continent Action Plan”,

– having regard to the reports of September 2024 by Mario Draghi entitled ‘The future of European competitiveness’ (the ‘Draghi report’) and of April 2024 by Enrico Letta entitled ‘Much more than a market’ (the ‘Letta report’),

– having regard to the final report of the study commissioned by the European Commission entitled “Study exploring the context, challenges, opportunities, and trends in algorithmic management” (VT-2022-035),

– having regard to the OECD report “Algorithmic management in the workplace: New evidence from an OECD employer survey”, OECD Artificial Intelligence Papers, No. 31,

– having regard to the European Added Value Assessment by the European Parliamentary Research Service published in October 2025, entitled ‘Digitalisation, artificial intelligence and algorithmic management in the workplace – shaping the future of work’,

– having regard to Rules 47 and 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A10-0244/2025),

A. whereas the digital transition, driven by digitalisation, automation and artificial intelligence (AI), is reshaping labour markets and altering the nature of work; whereas, given that certain tasks are being automated, it becomes increasingly important to enable new professions, develop work tasks, provide training, re-skilling and up-skilling and transform existing jobs through new technologies in order to enhance competitiveness and foster economic growth, as well as to strengthen the workforce and improve working conditions; whereas taking advantage of these new technologies requires continuous adaptation of public authorities, education policies, businesses and workers to ensure Europe can benefit from the estimated net growth of 78 million jobs due to AI (7 % of today’s total employment) by 2030 according to the World Economic Forum;

C. whereas digital transition in the labour market is driving increasing demand for both basic and high-level digital and AI literacy and skills; whereas the Draghi report and the Letta report both identify the digital skills gap as a major obstacle to Europe’s competitiveness;

D. whereas the rapid integration of AI systems must be matched by sufficient training; whereas only 15 % of workers have participated in relevant training in 2023 to further develop their AI knowledge and skills while 42 % of workers acknowledge the need to improve their AI-related skills and 61 % predict new skills requirements in the next five years; whereas, however, especially SMEs lack strategies and resources to mitigate the risk that lower-skilled labour in small businesses will be subject to a skills gap; whereas those most in need of digital skills training are the ones least likely to take part in it;

E. whereas the adaptation of educational systems, particularly the vocational education and training sector as well as well improved cooperation between educational institutions, trade unions and employers, is essential to foresee future needs of the labour market and equip learners with the necessary skills to thrive in a competitive, digital and technologically advanced society;

F. whereas AI and algorithmic management are evolving concepts; whereas algorithmic management systems are predominantly used for the following managerial activities: recruitment, work/task scheduling, nudging/directing worker monitoring/surveillance; worker evaluation, talent management/ training, rewarding workers and worker dismissal; whereas algorithmic management is often not deployed through specific software, but as an integral part of legacy software; and whereas any future initiative in this area should be future proof and flexible enough to adapt to forthcoming developments;

G. whereas AI and algorithmic management can provide numerous opportunities for work optimisation, greater consistency and objectivity of managerial decisions and improved occupational health and safety as well as workers satisfaction, but come also with certain risks if not designed and deployed in a human-centric manner, such as reduced worker autonomy, lack of transparency and increased work intensity; whereas the use of AI and algorithmic management can reduce tedious tasks and overall workload, improve task allocation and productivity, prevent occupational risks and reduce costs; whereas a European framework on AI can ensure that AI is deployed as an efficient support to human workers, with the aim of generating real productivity gains and improve working conditions and not merely speculative benefits; whereas research demonstrates that many corporate investments in generative AI, despite its capacity to create new content, have not yet resulted in measurable productivity gains or returns;

H. whereas it is important to prevent and address risks related to quality working conditions and OSH stemming from AI and algorithmic management systems such as increased time and performance pressure, work intensification, discrimination, intrusive monitoring and undue surveillance as well as certain biases in AI systems, loss of autonomy, deskilling, social isolation, workplace related stress, and other mental health and psychosocial issues; whereas existing European legislation, including the General Data Protection Regulation, the Artificial Intelligence Act, and the European social acquis contribute to addressing and preventing some of those risks; whereas the Artificial Intelligence Act has not yet become fully applicable;

I. whereas technological developments leading to constant connectivity and availability can blur the boundaries between the spheres of work and private life;

J. whereas the deployment of AI and algorithmic management systems in the workplace involves the collection and processing of a large volume of worker data, which can raise concerns about data protection and privacy and requires reducing power imbalances by setting rules collectively through social dialogue in its management and compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation and any more specific rules concerning the processing of personal data in an employment context as set out in national law or applicable collective agreements; whereas the impact of new technologies on the working environment and possible breaches of workers’ privacy should be monitored;

K. whereas consent on the basis of Article 6(1), point (a), of the General Data Protection Regulation has to be freely given, and in situations of clear imbalance such freely given consent is highly unlikely; whereas consent should therefore not provide a lawful ground for processing of personal data for the purposes of automated monitoring or automated decision-making, given the imbalance of power between the data subject and the controller in the context of employment and the performance of a contract;

L. whereas algorithmic management systems were first adopted and deployed in a widespread manner by digital labour platforms, but are now widely deployed across the labour market;

N. whereas 62 % of Europeans have a positive view of the use of robots and AI in the workplace and 73 % agree that robots and AI increase the pace at which workers complete tasks; whereas 66 % of Europeans believe that more jobs will disappear than be created due to the use of robots and AI; whereas 61 % of Europeans believe that robots and AI have a negative impact on communication between colleagues; whereas young and working people as well as those with higher levels of education have a more positive view of the use of new technologies in the workplace; whereas this reflects a growing openness to innovation and the potential of AI to enhance productivity, job quality and economic competitiveness, provided it is developed and implemented responsibly;

O. whereas according to an OECD survey, 60 % of managers believe algorithmic management improves the quality of their own decision-making; whereas at the same time nearly two-thirds of managers surveyed expressed concern regarding algorithmic management tools they use: unclear accountability in the case of a wrong decision (28 %), inability to follow the logic of algorithmic decisions or recommendations (27 %) and inadequate protection of workers’ physical and mental health (27 %);

P. whereas less than half of those currently in employment say their employer informed them about the use of digital technologies, while more than half of employers and managers report having done so; whereas only 18 % of those currently employed report having received a detailed explanation, including information about the benefits, drawbacks, and their rights;

Q. whereas the recurrent consultation and involvement of the social partners, managers and workers and their representatives in the deployment of new technologies significantly enhance acceptance and positive perceptions of their use, maximising the benefits and allowing for any related risks to be addressed throughout the technological lifecycle;

R. whereas small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for 99 % of all businesses in the Union and whereas any future initiative should take into account their limited technical, financial and administrative resources, providing proportionality, preventing unnecessary administrative burden and fostering an enabling environment for the responsible uptake of digital technologies;

S. whereas less than half of those currently in employment say their employer informed them about the use of digital technologies, while more than half of employers and managers report having done so; whereas this proportion includes 16 % who say they have been made aware of this, but without further details, and 18 % who report having received a detailed explanation, including information about the benefits, drawbacks, and their rights;

T. whereas most Europeans support rules on digital technologies in the workplace, with over 80 % supporting rules on protecting workers privacy and 77 % supporting involvement of workers in design and adaptation of technology;

1. Emphasises that any new technology must be deployed and used with the overarching goal of serving people and should be driven by the “ethics-by-default” and “precautionary” principles as well as a human-centric approach, managed by the people building on the provisions on human oversight provided for in Article 14 of the Artificial Intelligence Act and Article 22 of the General Data Protection Regulation;