Confusion over new retirement rules

Most employers will now be aware that the government is committed to the abolition of the default retirement age (DRA) later this year.

Despite this phasing out of the DRA, set for the end of September, employers had been led to expect that they could still force people aged 65 and over to retire if they issued retirement notices by 6 April this year.

But what many employers may not be aware of is wording in new draft regulations for the legislation which could mean some of those retirement notices may have to be withdrawn.

These draft regulations indicate that only people who turn 65 between April and September can still be forcibly retired, and that those already aged over 65 are safe from this.

Employers should be aware of a number of crucially important issues. For example, it will still be possible to operate a compulsory retirement age, provided the employer can justify it objectively.

Individual employers will need to be more effective in terms of succession planning and their assessment of how the proposals affect retirements across the organisation

Tina Clayton
Moore and Smalley