This first AFT webinar in a series on the Future of Work in Public Services, supported by PSI, asks the question: How do unions help workers deal with the implications of the digital revolution in the public sector workplace?

A panel of experts explored the impact of the introduction of digitalisation and the consequences for workers and the services they deliver. It concluded that we must learn from each other and use collective bargaining to address digitalization and artificial intelligence in the workplace.

The webinar introduced the groundbreaking PSI report Digitalisation and Public Services: A Labour Perspective that sets out the results of the first global survey of digitalisation in the public sector.

Eckhard Voss, the report's author, outlined the direct effects workers experienced from digitalisation in public services and Daniel Bertossa, PSI Assistant General Secretary, elaborated on the economic and political implications of allowing private companies to control public data.

Tom Kochan, Co-Director, MIT Sloan Institute for Work and Employment Research explained what specific steps unions, employers and working people can take to prepare for the changing nature of work in all of our respective fields.

Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teachers concluded by outlining AFTs experiences with digitalisation and concluded with a strong call to organise workers and take control through workplace bargaining.

Sponsored by the AFT and PSI-North America, this is the first in a series of webinars on the future of work in education and the public sector. With over 100 participants the seminar was well supported. They are designed for elected leaders, collective bargaining teams, policy researchers, and union lawyers.