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Leading Employers Respond to Inland Revenue reform outlined by minister 2 October 2002 Ms Sam Mercer, campaign director of the Employers Forum on Age, says: ´The Employers Forum on Age (EFA) welcomes the Inland Revenue reforms outlined yesterday by work and pensions secretary Andrew Smith at the Labour party conference. At present, the current complex IR rules are hampering the introduction of more flexible retirement policies. They prevent some workers from taking a pension and a salary from the same employer, making it almost impossible to stay on or wind down gradually from full employment. ´Employers have been campaigning on this issue for the past five years. Flexible retirement not only benefits employees, but also enables employers to retain experienced workers in the face of skills shortages. With legislation on age discrimination due to come into force by 2006, employers want to ensure they are fair to employees of all ages. ´The EFA is delighted that the Government is finally taking forward its own Performance and Innovation Unit report (´Winning the Generation Game´) which recommends encouraging older people to stay in the workforce. We now want to see results – the Government must commit to introducing greater flexibility at the end of working life, as promised in its manifesto. ´Restrictions on Inland Revenue rules were designed to stop a minority of workers from abusing the system. It is now time that pension rules be tailored to suit the majority of workers, who need flexible options to meet their evolving work patterns.´ back to the archive |
