The Crisis of Dignity at Work: Dehumanization during Digital Transformation, Societal Upheaval, and Workforce Uncertainty

Today, we witness unprecedented threats to dignity at work on a global scale, precipitated by workforce reductions, demeaning of public sector professionals and their contributions to society, funding withdrawal from important agencies and initiatives, and program closures at such a scale not thought possible until recently. This is putting progress for everything at risk, from environmental justice (access to clean water and air), to programs for the differently-abled and marginalized communities, to basic research on life-saving medical therapies. Many of these disruptions have been justified based on the promise that automation and artificial intelligence (AI) can substitute for the work of humans. In this guidepost, we ask, at what cost to society? And what can organizational scholars do about this? We call for research that rehumanizes work, recognizes the potential dark side of automation and AI, and reinstates hope and dignity during digital transformation.