Amendments to age equality laws move a step closer
AMMENDMENTS to the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 could still be made after a European Court judgement on a case brought by charity Age Concern.
According to the Sheffield office of law firm Irwin Mitchell, which is acting for Age Concern in the legal challenge, the judgment by the European Court of Justice (EJC) means that the Government will now have to justify statutory retirement procedures and statutory default retirement age of 65 in the High Court, where it will have to meet a “high standard of proof”.
These may extend the right of employees to claim that their enforced retirement was discriminatory on grounds of their age.
The case will now return to the High Court in London, meaning age discrimination cases against employers are likely to remain on hold till a final decision is handed down upon whether or not the statutory retirement procedures are safe to use.
According to Liesel Whitfield, a lawyer on the employment team, that means that all employers will need to be careful when looking to apply statutory retirement rules until the High Court makes its judgement.
She said: “Employers should continue to view the statutory retirement procedures with caution.
“They were intended to provide a safe method of dismissing employees who had reached the default retirement age and were an absolute defence to claims of unfair dismissal as long as the procedures were properly followed.”
Ms Whitfield said it was clear howver that employers who had used the statutory retirement procedures as a means of reducing employee numbers or as a method of encouraging staff turnover could now potentially face successful claims of age discrimination against them.
“The law needed clarification, as neither employers nor older employees knew where they stood,” she continued.
“The ECJ has made it clear that an employer’s circumstances cannot be used to justify discrimination on the grounds of age. The decision of the ECJ will guide the High Court when it comes to consider whether the UK Government can justify the default retirement age of 65.”
