Age Information
The 2006 Age Discrimination Legislation
On 1 October 2006 the government introduced legislation to make it illegal to discriminate
on the basis of age in employment, whether in recruitment training, promotion or
dismissal. This brought age discrimination in line with other forms of discrimination
- gender, ethnicity, disability, religion and sexuality – which already had legislation
in place to prevent their occurrence.
The legislation is categorical, stating that decisions made by employers about recruitment
or any other aspect of employment should take no account of age. The implications
will be far-reaching for companies, and for the people they employ at both ends
of the age scale. Recruiters will no longer be able to disqualify candidates for
having “too much experience” and so graduate intakes are likely to become more mixed
in terms of age.
In a recent survey we carried out among our subscribers and companies, the majority
of respondents felt that the legislation was "a good thing".
- 63% agreed with the statement, "there's no such thing as a career for life, and
people should be able to switch careers without being penalised for having done
something else before".
- 94% of respondents relished the idea of working in teams of mixed ages, as opposed
to teams of young graduates.
- 66% of Employers welcomed the legislation and felt it was a positive development.
Age Discrimination in the Workplace
- By 2006 there will be more 55-64 year olds than 16-24 year olds for the first time.
- Between 1986 and 2006, the number of 35-44 year old men will increase by nineteen
% and the number of women in this age group by thirty nine %.
- Life expectancy increases one more year approximately every four years.
Facts and Figures
About 66% of employers acknowledge age is a barrier to finding a job and career
progression (Employers' Forum on Age).
23% of British employees claim to have fallen victim to discrimination, bullying
or harassment at work. This rises to 37% of older workers (over 55s.) Ill-treatment
because of age is higher than that because of disability (Mori).
78 % of older unemployed people felt their age counted against then when trying
to find work (Centre for economic and social inclusion).
Nine out of 10 people aged 50 and over receive no training from their employer at
all.
At least 40 % of people who retired early feel they were forced to quit against
their will and would have continued to work.
Business Case for Diversity
- The Employers' Forum on Age has calculated that age discrimination costs the UK
economy £31 billion every year.
- By 2006, 45-59 year olds will form the largest group in the labour force.
- The cost of age discrimination to the economy is £5.5 billion (Government tax and
benefits) and £31 billion in lost production.
- Small businesses started by people aged over 45 are twice as likely to succeed as
businesses started by younger people. (Employers' forum on Age)
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