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THE AGE DISCRIMINATION ACT 2006 …Hints, Tips and Advice!
The Age Discrimination Act 2006 came into force in October 2006. The ADA 2006 drastically changed and altered the way in which companies operate. There is no option in the present age of society for age discrimination in the workplace, especially when younger people now have more opportunities to be trained and are more qualified than previous generations, and older people are living longer.
As employers, it is urged that conclusions are drawn purely on competence based candidates, therefore making candidates’ talents, attributes and abilities key – it is beneficial for business development, excellent for candidates and even more important to maintain a positive working society.
The Age Discrimination Act 2006 aims to combat unlawful recruitment and employment by introducing the:
v Ban of age discrimination in terms of recruitment, promotion and training
v Ban of unjustified retirement ages below 65
v Removal of the current age limit for unfair dismissal and redundancy rights
v Rights for employees to request working beyond retirement age and a duty on employers to consider that request
v New requirement for employers to give at least six months notice to employees about their intended retirement dates so that individuals can plan better for retirement, and be confident that ‘retirement’ is not being used as cover for unfair dismissal
ACAS states– ‘Here is a checklist to start you thinking about how you can meet the new requirements…’
Recruitment advertisements
- avoid specifying a minimum or maximum length of xperience as this disadvantages certain groups
- advertise in a cross-section of media so you get I touch with all age groups
Application Forms
- do not ask for dates of the birth or unnecessary dates of employment history
- use skills/competence-based application forms
Selection Procedures
- train managers to avoid stereotypes eg the assumption that younger workers do not have the skills for management or older workers are just coasting towards retirement
- monitor the results of your recruitment and selection. Do you need to take positive action to help recruit certain age groups?
Training
- make sure training is open to all – do not overlook an older person for training thinking they may not be interested in career development
Performance Appraisal
- set the same standards of performance regardless of the age of the employee
- when writing appraisal reports avoid comments like ‘does well despite of their age’ or ‘shows remarkable maturity for their age’
Redundancy Policy
- review your policies: use of LIFO (last in, first out) or length of service to select employees for redundancy is likely to be discriminatory
Equality policy
- add age to your equality policy and talk to your employees about how you tackle age discrimination
- make sure bullying and harassment policies cover age
Know your workforce
- think about who is likely to retire when the government plans to introduce a national default retirement age of 65
- consider flexible working for older workers
Websites advised to look at for further information:
Age Positive, ACAS and Age Partnership Group
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