Default retirement age to be abolished
Thursday 13th January 2011
The Government has today confirmed that the "default retirement age" will be abolished from 1st October this year. The default retirement age rules were an exemption against the general principles of age discrimination, as they allowed employers to require employees to retire at the age of 65 (provided that a set procedure was followed).
There will as anticipated be a transitional phase, starting in April.
The Government's view is that the performance of older workers should be managed by discussion and formal capability processes.
The Government has also said that it will introduce an exemption to the effect that not offering certain types of benefit, such as Private Medical Insurance, will not amount to age discrimination in certain cases - further details will follow.
Ashfords LLP is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The information in this note is intended to be general information about English law only and not comprehensive. It is not to be relied on as legal advice nor as an alternative to taking professional advice relating to specific circumstances.
