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February 2012
Putting lawyers in touch with the youth of Oldham
Pearson Hinchliffe partner, Michael Pitt, takes over as 2012 Oldham Law Association President.
MoreCompulsory retirement age to be axed from October 2011
29th July 2010
Under the plans employers will no longer be allowed to dismiss an employee simply because they had reached the age of 65 as permitted by the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006.
The proposal, which is subject to a consultation running until 21 October 2010, is to begin to phase out the DRA from April 2011.
The key proposals are:
- Retirements under the DRA will cease completely on 1 October 2011. Given that an employer must give six months' notice before forcing someone to retire on the grounds of age, no new notices of intended retirement may be issued after 6 April 2011.
- Retirement dismissals will still be permissible after 1 October 2011 but only if “objectively justified” in the case of air traffic controllers and police officers, for example.
- Transitional arrangements will apply to retirements that have been notified before 6 April 2011 to take effect before 1 October 2011. Retirements notified before 6 April 2011, but intended to take effect after 1 October 2011 will not be valid unless objectively justified
- The procedural requirements applicable to a retirement dismissal, currently set out in Schedule 6 to the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations, will be abolished.
Ageing population
The Government hopes the change, one of a number of measures, will encourage people to work for longer thus, easing the strain on public finances arising from the demographic shift in the UK. Under the new system more people would continue to pay tax while at the same time claiming the state pension.
Campaigners such as the Employers Forum on Age have fought against the DRA as ‘ageist’.
However, employers groups have voiced their concerns that scrapping the DRA could make workforce planning more difficult and add to administrative cost.
Further resources on the phasing out of the DRA
Read the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills press release:
More choice on when to stop working - default retirement age retired
Access the Consultation Document:
"Phasing out the Default Retirement Age"
To discuss any employment law issue affecting your business, or you personally, please feel free to contact an employment law specialist using the details provided below.
January 2012
Company and commercial law reforms to reduce red tape
Companies of all shapes and sizes have been asked for their views on how to tackle unnecessary bureaucracy in company and commercial law.
MoreJanuary 2012
Increase in unfair dismissal qualifying period will apply only to new employees
From 6 April 2012 the qualifying period of service for making a claim increases from one to two years.
MoreJanuary 2012
Maximum compensation for unfair dismissal increases from 1 February 2012
Annual revision of employment tribunal award limits and other amounts payable under employment legislation.
MoreDecember 2011
Health and safety laws to be cut by half
Government plans to slash health and safety red tape will mean substantial savings for small firms, business groups have said.
MoreNovember 2011
Weight Watchers case: the importance to employers of employment status.
The Upper Tier Tribunal holds 1,700 ‘leaders’ at Weight Watchers were employees for tax purposes.
MoreSeptember 2011
How to Conduct a Disciplinary Hearing
A recent presentation by Employment solicitor, Susan Mayall, setting out the stages for handling a disciplinary, referencing the ACAS Code of Conduct.
June 2011
ACAS Advice leaflet “Holidays and Holiday Pay”
Download the guidance covering arrangements for holidays and holiday pay.
October 2010
Recent Case Study: Commercial Landlord and Tenant - An Authorised Guarantee Agreement
Authorised Guarantee Agreements keep the original tenant on the hook in case a third party assignee defaults; they should be drafted with care.
July 2010
Recent Case Study: Doing Battle in the Boardroom
How Pearson Hinchliffe Commercial Law helped members of the Board of Directors achieve the outcome they sought in their boardroom dispute with a senior executive director.
May 2010
How the Mergers & Acquisitions team helped Lanes Group PLC achieve their LAS sell-off
Drainage specialists dispose £12.3 million majority stake in Lanes Assistance Services.
March 2010
PH Employment Direct
The Employment team at Pearson Hinchliffe Commercial Law have created PH Employment Direct - a user-friendly and simple service that gives you access to the best advice at the end of a phone 24hrs a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.
February 2010
Oldham Construction Sector
On 3 February 2010 Corporate Commercial partner Roger Hinchliffe delivered a presentation entitled, ‘Joint Ventures’ to the Oldham Construction Sector group.
January 2010
Debt Recovery Service
With our specialist commercial Debt Recovery service you can significantly increase the speed and likelihood of recovering the money owed to your business.