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If you make sure you have good HR policies in place and manage issues consistently you should safely steer clear of any issues when the current default retirement age is scrapped in October 2011 but in the lead up to this, Employers should tread carefully to avoid falling foul of the legislation.
Rules on default retirement ages vary across Europe but even where there is no default retirement age, figures from a previous survey showed that people did not, on average, work beyond the age of 65 so the impact many businesses are worrying about may never materialise.
Current legislation also allows Employers to refuse to employ workers over age 65 and refuse to consider an application from anyone who applies for a job within six months of their 65th birthday but this will no doubt become illegal after in 2011 and so Employers will need to tread carefully when recruiting and selecting staff as mistakes throught this process could potentially leave them vulnerable to age discrimination claims.
The current legislation may allow discrimination on the grounds of age where there is an 'objective justification' for it. For example, making special provisions for younger or older workers in order to protect their safety and welfare but how this will look after 1 October 2011 is still not clear.
Although the final draft isn't yet available, there are two key things Employers should be aware of:
1. Between 6 April and 1 October 2011, Employers can NOT issue any notifications of compulsory retirement using the current DRA procedure.
2. If you have contracts and/or staff handbooks that contain a mandatory retirement age, these wil need to be amended to ensure they comply with the change in legislation.
The Consultation Document issued by BIS can be found HERE.
Do you think this will impact your business?
Rules on default retirement ages vary across Europe but even where there is no default retirement age, figures from a previous survey showed that people did not, on average, work beyond the age of 65 so the impact many businesses are worrying about may never materialise.
Current legislation also allows Employers to refuse to employ workers over age 65 and refuse to consider an application from anyone who applies for a job within six months of their 65th birthday but this will no doubt become illegal after in 2011 and so Employers will need to tread carefully when recruiting and selecting staff as mistakes throught this process could potentially leave them vulnerable to age discrimination claims.
The current legislation may allow discrimination on the grounds of age where there is an 'objective justification' for it. For example, making special provisions for younger or older workers in order to protect their safety and welfare but how this will look after 1 October 2011 is still not clear.
Although the final draft isn't yet available, there are two key things Employers should be aware of:
1. Between 6 April and 1 October 2011, Employers can NOT issue any notifications of compulsory retirement using the current DRA procedure.
2. If you have contracts and/or staff handbooks that contain a mandatory retirement age, these wil need to be amended to ensure they comply with the change in legislation.
The Consultation Document issued by BIS can be found HERE.
Do you think this will impact your business?
