News
Con/Lib Coalition Government pulls back on retirement commitments.
13 May 2010
Despite commitments to abolish the DRA in both manifestos, the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition agreement state that default retirement age will be ‘phased out’.Rachel Krys, campaign director of leading age campaigners, the Employers Forum on Age (EFA), commented: "This is a missed opportunity for the new Government. The default retirement age is fundamentally discriminatory, based on the assumption that age affects someone's ability to do their job. Despite manifesto commitments from both parties, this new Government is not prepared to go far enough to ensure that age cannot be used arbitrarily to dismiss people.
To phase out this policy is not sufficient. The Employers Forum on Age (EFA) has been campaigning against the default retirement age for many years and works with a number of employers, including the Department for Work and Pensions itself, which report that operating without the default retirement age has resulted in significant business benefits.
We are calling on Government to reconsider, and commit to fully removing this outdated retirement rule."
For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact the following:
The Employers Forum on Age
Rachel Krys T: 07799 625 233 E: rachel.krys@efa.org.uk
Lansons Communications, Chantal Heckford
T: 0207 294 3630 E: chantalh@lansons.com
The Employers Forum on Age (EFA) is the leading campaigner on age issues in the workplace. The EFA is a think tank of employers established in 1996 to eradicate ageism in the workplace. Since then it has helped provide advice, training and support for workplaces that want to eradicate age discrimination from their employment practices and helped prepare them for the new legislation.