Bumper New Year Edition - That Age Old Problem Won´t Retire

In a previous bulletin, we discussed the impact of the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 ('the Regulations') that came into force on 1 October 2006. The Regulations protect employees, applicants and contract workers from discrimination, harassment or victimisation on the basis of their age (or perceived age). Just as employers are updating their processes to conform to the Regulations, a recent High Court action may force us all to rethink our approach.

Heyday, the membership organisation for people planning for, or already in, retirement (and which is backed by Age Concern), is seeking judicial review of the Regulations. The Regulations implement a European Directive, which was designed to promote equal treatment in employment and which prohibits age discrimination in the workplace. The Regulations remove the upper age limit for unfair dismissal claims and also give employees the right to ask to work beyond 65. However, the Regulations also state that it is lawful to