Forties People Blog

The Anti-Ageism Law - What does it really mean to you?

“When they saw how old I was I just knew the interview was effectively over – despite the fact that I knew my qualifications and experience could have been a real asset to that company” – was a typical experience.

Almost every older person that came to us believed that employers generally discriminated against older workers and a study by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) believed that 1 in 5 jobseekers had been discouraged from applying for a position because it contained an age restriction.
Now, following years of active campaigning and lobbying by agencies like Forties People, the Age Legislation Act hit the statute books last autumn – and not before time as those in the know reckon ageism in employment has been costing the state £31 billion a year.

But what does it all mean to you and is it really going to help?

Well the new law outlaws age discrimination in employment and vocational training.
Age must no longer feature in any recruitment procedure. Interviewers must only ask job-related questions and any work-related tests must not discriminate against older people.

The law covers both private and public sectors and includes all workers (young and old) including self-employed, contract workers, the police and members of trade organizations; people who apply for work and in some cases people who have left work. (Members of the regular armed forces, full-time and part-time reservists and unpaid volunteers are not covered by the regulations)

Plus there is now a national default retirement age of 65. That means employers can no longer force anyone to retire before then (This can only be overruled in cases where there is a genuine occupational requirement)
From April 2007 an employer must now give an employee who’s approaching 65 no less than six months’ notice of their intended retirement date.
The idea here is that people will be able to plan better for their retirement and be confident that ‘retirement’ is not being used to cover unfair dismissal. (Before this employers only had to give four weeks’ notice)
Now all employees will have the right to request to work beyond 65 and employers will now have a duty to consider, although not necessarily accept, such a request.
What happens in practice here is the employee meets with the employer to discuss the request - and there is a right of appeal process in place if the outcome of the meeting is unsatisfactory to the employee.

The government has made it very clear that it wants employers to work with the spirit of the law, not just the letter. At Forties People and agencies like ours, we are trying to help older people find jobs and get back to work if they want to but we don’t refuse to register anyone because of their age – young or old.
It’s really quite simple in our view. It’s all about finding the right person for the job and it shouldn’t matter whether that person is seventeen or seventy.
Older people often have an advantage in terms of suitability because they often have more life and work experience than younger candidates.

Any Workshop readers with job-related questions and challenges can contact Forties People on: 0207 329 4044 or 01923 212444 or via email for free help and advice.

Workshop Thought
“The true way to render ourselves happy is to love our work and find in it our pleasure.”
Francoise De Motteville

Taken from a article written in the Hampstead & Highgate Express © 2007

Labels: Ageism, Article, HamHigh, Law, Workshop

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