Retirement- some news

Daniel Barnett has just released a great summary of the fndings of the tribunal hearing Seldon vs. Clarkson Wright & Jakes, with interesting update on whether employers can ever justifiably enforce a retirement age.

I advise clients never to adopt a policy that enforces retirement at a specific age unless they are prepared for a) a big overhaul in the legislation in their favour, b) a lengthy battle to prove that retirement can be objectively justified or c) that their reasons are unquestionably sound in the eyes of any tribunal court that might consider them. It would take a lot of confidence to adopt a policy that flew in the face of the law, though it is an issue worth monitoring and I doubt this will be the last case that sees an employer challenge the law and retire staff on grounds of succession, retention, planning, collegiality or safety.

With the Seldon result, employers should indeed be careful to consider that there's been any big change in the position, and continue to work in like with the legislation that saw the Default Retirement Age scrapped in 2011.