Are employers required to disclose when AI is used in the hiring process

Inconsistent, Jurisdiction-Dependent Requirements

Whether employers are required to disclose AI use in hiring depends significantly on the specific jurisdiction involved — some specific state and local laws mandate this kind of disclosure, while many other jurisdictions currently lack a specific legal requirement, creating genuinely inconsistent practice depending on where a hiring process takes place.

Where Specific Disclosure Requirements Exist

Some jurisdictions have enacted specific laws requiring employers to disclose the use of certain automated employment decision tools to candidates, New York City’s Local Law 144 being a particularly prominent and frequently cited example, generally requiring covered employers to notify candidates that such a tool will be used in evaluating their application, alongside other requirements like bias audits.

Where No Specific Requirement Currently Exists

In many other jurisdictions, there’s currently no specific legal requirement mandating that employers disclose AI or automated tool use to job candidates, meaning a candidate applying in one of these locations might not automatically be informed that an algorithm played a role in screening their application or evaluating their interview, absent a specific state or local law requiring this.

Why This Creates Meaningfully Different Candidate Experiences by Location

Given this considerable variation, the actual transparency a candidate experiences around AI hiring tool use can differ significantly depending simply on where they happen to be applying, reflecting the broader pattern of AI hiring regulation developing unevenly at the state and local level rather than through one uniform national standard.

Why Candidates in Jurisdictions Without Mandatory Disclosure Should Consider Asking Directly

In locations without a specific disclosure requirement, a candidate genuinely interested in knowing whether AI played a role in their evaluation generally needs to proactively ask the employer directly, since this information may not be automatically volunteered absent a specific legal obligation requiring it.

Why This Remains an Area of Active Legislative Attention

Given growing public and regulatory attention to AI hiring tool transparency, additional jurisdictions have considered or may consider similar disclosure requirements going forward, meaning the current patchwork of requirements could continue to expand or become more consistent over time, though the current landscape remains genuinely uneven.

Bottom Line

Whether employers must disclose AI use in hiring depends significantly on jurisdiction — some specific laws, like New York City’s Local Law 144, require this disclosure, while many other jurisdictions currently lack a specific mandatory requirement, meaning candidates in many locations may need to directly ask employers whether automated tools were used, since this information isn’t automatically guaranteed everywhere.

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