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Age Discrimination

5 Steps to avoid Age Discrimination

Experts have warned that high profile cases like that of Selina Scott, allied with the surge in redundancies, will encourage more employees to take their cases to court.

We have put together some simple guidance to help you avoid getting caught up in a whirlwind of age discrimination claims, and what better time to do so than at the start of a new year.

The first step is to understand exactly what age discrimination is!

Start by looking at legislation and high profile cases that have moulded the law into the shape we find it in today. A good place to start would be by reviewing our monthly Employment Law Update. 

As a general rule, remember - age legislation makes it unlawful to discriminate against workers, employees, job seekers and trainees based on their age. So, be particularly careful when recruiting, dismissing, offering training, benefits and job promotions.

Start as you mean to go on with our five point plan...

1. Keep an avid eye on HR industry news

Have a look at high profile cases causing a stir in the media. The chances are that your employees will follow these cases by example when seeking to make claims of their own. You might even stumble across a few golden tips on how similar companies have eliminated and reduced discrimination in the workplace. Why not check out our HR Industry News.

2. Introduce preventative training

Provide your employees with the chance to learn about age discrimination – what it is, and the steps to take if they become subject to or witness it. This way all misconceptions will be cleared up, and should ever a problem arise, your employees will be more likely to seek advice from someone within the company first. Supervisors and managers should also take an active part in this training to find out about their important role and responsibility in reducing discrimination.

3. Carry out an appraisal of your company’s culture

Take assertive action and create a company culture which makes it clear that discrimination, of any kind, won’t be tolerated. Ensure that all managers are aware of all age discrimination policies and legislation in place to prevent it. Maybe communicate your company’s age discrimination policy by posting it on bulletin boards or on the company intranet.

4. Revise your hiring and screening processes

Remove all age limits from your hiring/screening process.  A few examples of areas that you could look at are:

• Take ‘date of birth’ off any application forms, and concentrate on skills and ability instead.
• Use a mixed age interview panel
• Salary requirements should not be assumed on the basis of age.
• Place job adverts where they will reach candidates of all ages
• Refrain from using terms such as 'young' , 'mature' or 'older' in job adverts.

5. Carefully craft your benefits and retirement policies

Make sure that all benefits and retirement policies are up to date and in-line with legislation. You can use the following areas as a starting point, and then build on it!

• Promote employees based on merit, not age.
• Ensure that learning and development opportunities are available to everyone in your company.
• Redundancy decisions should be based on objective, job-related criteria. 
• Your retirement policy should be fair and designed to meet individual needs. Consider flexible or extended retirement options where possible.

Companies who fail to make changes to their employment policies are putting themselves at risk of employment disputes. So... act now and don’t let this be you!