Big Bad Data May Be Triggering Discrimination

By Kevin McGowan, Bloomberg BNA

“Big data” is filled with promise for improving recruitment and hiring, but if employers don’t take care it can also drive them to unintentionally commit discrimination.

“It’s a bit of a black box,” said Commissioner Victoria Lipnic (R) of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, referring to the formulas data analysts and programmers develop to aid employers in their talent searches.

Vendors that promote the algorithms say using a neutral formula that eliminates the human element, at least in the early stages of searching for and recruiting candidates, reduces the risk of unlawful bias.

But others ...