The petition
We are calling for large employers planning substantial AI-driven redundancies to complete a documented human review before final decisions are made. The review should explain which functions are being automated, what evidence supports the productivity case, what alternatives were considered and what retraining or redeployment is realistically available.
Why this is controversial
AI can raise productivity and remove repetitive work. Preventing firms from reorganising can protect inefficient processes and weaken British competitiveness. But a decision affecting hundreds or thousands of livelihoods should not become less accountable simply because an algorithm, consultancy model or automation forecast sits behind it.
What the safeguard should cover
This should apply to substantial redundancy programmes materially justified by AI or automation, not every software upgrade. Employers should consult affected workers, document where humans remain accountable, test whether automated systems are reliable enough to replace the work claimed and assess realistic redeployment before irreversible decisions.
What this petition does not ask for
It does not ask Britain to freeze AI adoption or guarantee every existing job forever. Businesses must be able to innovate. The request is for consequential workforce decisions to remain human decisions, supported by evidence and subject to the same seriousness expected in other major restructurings.
The principle
AI should be allowed to change work. It should not become a mechanism for diffusing responsibility for how that change is managed. Productivity and worker protection are not mutually exclusive, but achieving both requires employers to show their reasoning when automation becomes the basis for mass job losses.
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Before signing, read the strongest evidence-based arguments for and against this proposal.
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