First Default Retirement Age test launched
In what may prove a test case on new laws abolishing the default retirement age, a principal at a Scottish university has started tribunal proceedings after rejecting claims made by his employer that he had retired. Abertay University reportedly circulated an email to staff in error a couple of weeks ago ahead of an official […]
Older workers neglected in training and performance
If employers fail to tackle the current widespread neglect of older workers’ training and performance management requirements, they will leave themselves open to discrimination claims when the default retirement age is phased out in October. This is the warning issued by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development after publishing a survey of 2,000 respondents, […]
Case in point: Treating maternity leavers too favourably
Caught between a rock and a hard place: too favourable a treatment of employees on maternity leave during a redundancy process can lead to discrimination issues. The Employment Appeal Tribunal decision in Eversheds Legal Services Limited v Mr J De Belin has highlighted the difficulties facing employers who, in a bid to avoid discriminating against […]
Under 30s feel exploited and disengaged
The under-30s are the most disengaged age group in the workforce, feeling forced to do jobs they are not interested in as a result of the current economic climate as well as put upon by exploitative employers. According to a survey among 30,556 adults in 29 countries undertaken by market research firm GfK Custom Research, […]
Apprentice Katie claims three weeks maternity is enough
Katie Hopkins, the ex-Apprentice and reality TV contestant, has sparked another row by appearing on The One Show with a report (which you can view here on iPlayer – it starts at 8.58 minutes) suggesting women should take no more than three weeks off after giving birth. Most people realise being a parent isn’t an […]
New study highlights decision-making differences between genders
Men are prone to make black-or-white judgements when making decisions, while women are more inclined to see shades of grey, according to a study from Warwick University. This means that the former gender appear more suited to work environments that require decisive action, while the latter are likely to be more effective in occupations where […]
Ageism ‘endemic’ in the workplace
Ageist attitudes are endemic in the workplace and must be tackled by appointing a dedicated minister to champion over-60s at the highest level, a care home and retirement property provider has warned. The call for change came after Anchor commissioned ICM to undertake a survey among 2,011 adults who were over 18. The research revealed […]
Gender issues: Effective workplace communication
Gender is one of the most obvious differences in any group of employees, and an undeniable one: men and women aren’t just physically different, but grow up influenced by (and largely endure) different social conditioning. But while each of us has a gender, we also have a nationality and/or race, a set of personal beliefs, […]
EHRC to focus on promoting and enforcing equality at work
The coalition government has launched a consultation on plans to restrict the equality regulator’s remit to core activities, which include promoting awareness of and enforcing anti-discrimination legislation in the workplace. The Equality and Human Rights Commission was set up in October 2007 when it took over the work of the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Commission […]
Mum mentoring and menopause guidance for women in work
To coincide with International Women’s Day yesterday, Asda unveiled its Mum2Mum maternity leave mentoring scheme, while the TUC also published guidance for employers on how to support female workers going through the menopause. Asda’s Mum2Mum mentoring initiative is targeted at women going on maternity leave to “help counteract the dips in confidence and motivation mothers […]
International Women’s Day: The equality debate – how far have we come?
If you didn’t know already, today is International Women’s Day – a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future. In places like China, Russia, Vietnam and Bulgaria, International Women’s Day is a national holiday. However seeing as though it’s business as usual for us in the UK, […]
Default retirement age amendments announced
As official figures showed that the number of people aged 65 or over who work has doubled over the last 10 years, the coalition government moved to amend controversial draft regulations governing the end of the default retirement age. The initial version of the draft regulations laid before Parliament on 16 February had indicated that […]
Older workers have emotional intelligence to share
Although too many employers discriminate against older workers by focusing on potential decreases in physical and cognitive abilities, they should instead be harnessing their valuable emotional skills to help support younger colleagues. Research from the Manchester Business School reveals that older staff members are generally more effective at coping with emotional stress and burnout than […]
Positive action gets support to smash glass ceiling
Just under three quarters of women believe that they continue to face barriers to top-level promotion in the UK compared with only 38% of men who acknowledge that a glass ceiling still exists. The survey of 3,000 members of the Institute of Leadership and Management also revealed that some 47% of females compared with only […]
FTSE 100 need to diversify boardrooms or face quotas
A government inquiry is expected to recommend that FTSE 100 companies be given two years to radically increase the number of women in boardrooms or face the imposition of quotas. The review by Lord Davies of Abersoch, ex-trade minister and former chairman of bank Standard Chartered, is likely to reject the immediate introduction of statutory […]
Forcing retirement after the DRA? A high hurdle…
The recent announcement by the Government that the default retirement age (DRA) will, as expected, be abolished with effect from 1 October has been welcomed by age campaigners. It does not, however, necessarily spell the end of forced retirement and employers groups, including the CBI, have pointed out. The proposed abolition of the DRA in […]
Video: How will the default retirement age abolition affect you?
With the news that the coalition intends to go ahead with the abolition of the DRA, it's imperative to know how it will affect your business. Employment lawyer at Pinsent Masons, Sarah Banatvala, explains what approach businesses should take once the law is removed.
How will the Equality Act impact your Christmas celebrations?
It is well established that employers can be held vicariously liable for their employees actions in the course of their employment. This can include actions which take place outside the workplace, and outside of normal working hours including employers own Christmas parties and those of clients or customers. We have all heard stories of unruly […]
DRA scrapping could lead to more discrimination tribunals
Lack of clarity over future retirement rules could result in an escalation of discrimination-based tribunal claims once the default retirement age is scrapped next April, the CBI has warned. The employers lobby group said that the coalition government’s failure to produce any guidance or draft regulations on what a new legislative framework would look like […]
Getting retirement right
The recent announcement that the coalition government is to phase out the default retirement age of 65 was met with apprehension by some employers. Concerns were expressed that by abolishing fixed retirement ages we are loosing a dignified way of retiring staff whose performance may be in decline. In addition, employers feared that unproductive employees […]