Business representatives have warned the decision to scrap the Default Retirement Age will raise “complex legal and employment questions”.
Business representatives have warned the decision to scrap the Default Retirement Age (DRA) will raise “complex legal and employment questions”.
The government has said it will phase out the DRA from 6 April 2011. All accompanying statutory retirement procedures, such as the right of employees to request to work beyond their retirement age, will be removed.
Employers will continue to be able to justify objectively a compulsory retirement age as a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general, says that scrapping the DRA will leave a vacuum, and raise a large number of complex legal and employment questions, which the government has not yet addressed, creating uncertainty among employers and staff, who do not know where they stand. “There will need to be more than a code of practice to address these practical issues,” he says.
Stephen Riley, director of specialist recruiters Intapeople, says the decision to abandon the DRA could have major repercussions for the UK’s younger workers. “A typical scenario after a senior member of staff retires is that a colleague is promoted and a junior-level worker is brought on board. Any delay in this process puts additional pressure on the government to find new ways of encouraging business growth and creating jobs for our younger population.” (Read more)
