Should UK employers ditch compulsory retirement? asks Juliet Carp
UK employers and lawyers are considering the impact of the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ’s) decision that compulsory retirement at 65 is allowed in Spain (see Palacios de la Villa v Cortefiel Servicios SA: C-411/05 [2007] All ER (D) 207 (Oct)).
The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/1031) (the regulations) were introduced to comply with an EC Directive prohibiting age discrimination (Council Directive 2000/78/EC establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation (the Directive)) and allow compulsory retirement if a specified procedure is followed.
The Palacios decision follows another high-profile age discrimination decision—a UK employment tribunal recently decided in Bloxham v Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (July 2007 Central London Employment Tribunal) that City law firm Freshfields could justify its decision to re-organise pension arrangements to the detriment of some older partners (see NLJ, 2 November 2007, pp 1526–27).
The UK compulsory retirement provisions are being challenged by Heyday, a group connected to the charity Age Concern, and questions have been submitted to the ECJ. Once those questions are answered, the case is likely
