06/16/2026
06:00 PM - 07:30 PM | digital
Rethinking policies with and for data workers: Labor issues in the governance of AI supply chains
While AI systems are increasingly developed and adopted across diverse sectors, a large workforce in the Global South producing data and verifying automated outputs has remained invisible. These workers are called data workers.
Data workers often work under low pay and little social protection, and their contributions to the creation and maintenance of AI systems are hardly recognized.
A growing body of research and news reports has revealed data workers’ precarious labor conditions and advocated for integrating labor issues into AI supply chain governance. Workers have also engaged in collective action, such as establishing labor associations and filing lawsuits to keep business process outsourcing companies and big techs accountable. Additionally, various initiatives have been proposed, such as ethical outsourcing guidelines raised by NGOs and code of conducts for platforms. However, how to enhance and safeguard worker protection in policy making is insufficiently discussed.
This panel gathers experts from diverse backgrounds and fosters an open dialogue around following questions: What challenges do data workers face at work and in labor organization? What are the gaps in existing transnational governance frameworks that fail to protect data workers in the supply chains? How to enhance workers’ voice and address their needs in policy making?
Speakers
- Srravya Chandhiramowuli, University of Edinburgh
- Ephantus Kanyugi, Vice President & Programs Lead Data Labelers Association
- Nighat, Aapti Institute
Moderation
Tianling Yang, Research Associate in the Research Group “Data, Algorithmic Systems and Ethics”
Please register here for the free event.