Union urges mandatory AI safeguards to protect creative workers

The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance has urged the federal government to introduce mandatory safeguards on artificial intelligence after the release of the National AI Plan. The union said creative and media workers faced rising risks from unregulated systems.

The government outlined plans for ongoing oversight of AI and signalled new consultation on workplace and industrial issues. The plan also set expectations for the cultural and media sectors during a period of rapid technological change.

MEAA said many workers had already experienced harmful effects from unlicensed and unregulated use of generative AI. The union said current uncertainty had weakened confidence in jobs across journalism, entertainment and the wider creative industries.

Regulatory push

The plan included comments by government ministers about future copyright measures. The union said these measures were important for fair compensation in sectors exposed to AI use.

"MEAA welcomes the comments by Minister Ayers indicating the need to strengthen copyright and related regulation to guarantee workers fully benefit from AI developments, and we will continue to campaign for business and big tech to 'pay up'," said Erin Madeley, Chief Executive, Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance.

She said the creation of the AI Safety Institute marked an important step. The institute will monitor compliance with Australian law. She said it would act as a watchdog for AI developers and businesses.

"MEAA also welcomes the announcement of the AI Safety Institute, which will act as a necessary watchdog to ensure businesses and AI developers are compliant with Australian law," said Madeley.

The union said stronger and proactive protections were still required. It said these protections would reduce future harm and support a stable creative economy.

"However, in doing so, we reiterate our call for comprehensive protections that would proactively mitigate against potential harms caused by AI," said Madeley.

Voluntary guidelines

The government issued voluntary guidelines for transparency and watermarking. MEAA said voluntary standards had a weak record in protecting workers and consumers. The union said mandatory rules would improve accountability.

"MEAA calls on the government to work towards making these guidelines mandatory as a simple and effective step in mitigating some of the most well-known dangers of AI: the devaluation of human-made art, media and creative work, and the spread of misinformation and disinformation," said Madeley.

She said voluntary adoption risked weakening copyright protections. She said it also raised concerns about job security.

"By opting for voluntary guidelines, the government risks undermining copyright protections by exposing Australian creative and media workers to being squeezed out by cheap, AI-generated replacements," said Madeley.

She added that the public should be able to choose human-made creative work.

"Australians should have the right to choose human-made creative work over AI-generated material," said Madeley.

Data transparency

The union said there was still uncertainty about how AI companies would disclose training data. It said transparency was central to copyright enforcement. It also said transparency was important for privacy protection and reducing bias in AI systems.

MEAA said it expected the government to clarify its position soon. The union said clear rules would give workers and consumers greater confidence in the emerging regulatory environment.

The government is preparing further detail on data transparency measures in the coming months.