Ageist Advertising

Release date: 20/10/2006

EEF Yorkshire & Humberside warns employers to beware ageist advertising

EEF Yorkshire & Humberside, the business services organisation, has warned recruiters not to put themselves at risk of prosecution, now that new age discrimination legislation has become law.

The ‘Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006’ Act will have a major impact on recruitment advertisements and means that any references to age in wording or imagery could mean the advertiser falls foul of the law. While not directly illegal under the new legislation, the references could be seen as evidence of discrimination in breach of the Act and used in a subsequent lawsuit or tribunal.

Examples found in recent recruitment ads that could find employers at risk include:

Images of young people (this could put off older applicants. Language and pictures should appeal to a wide range of people)

“Working in a team of young people”

“Vibrant young office is looking for a team-player”

“Young graduates are sought”

“Applicants should be 25-30 years of age” (remove all age limits from adverts)

“Mature person is needed”

“The applicant should have at least two years’ experience” (this puts younger applicants at a disadvantage when it is the quality and relevance of their experience that counts)

In order to help HR departments address the new requirements in a practical and efficient way, EEF has developed a key guide for employers: Avoiding Age Discrimination: A Practical Guide to Managing a Changing Workforce. The guide is free to EEF Members and priced at £60.00 for non-members. It is available for order online from: www.eef.org.uk, or by telephoning: 020 7222 7777.

The ‘Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006’:

The ‘Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006’ legislation came into force on 1st October 2006. The regulations apply to discrimination in employment and in vocational training. They apply to employers, trade unions, professional associations, qualifications bodies, employers’ organisations in relation to their membership as well as in their role as employers, and pensions trustees and managers of occupational pension schemes. They give rights to people of all ages.

They:

· Prohibit unjustified age discrimination in employment and vocational training;

· Require employers who set their retirement age below the age of 65 to justify or change it;

· Introduce a duty on employers to consider an employee’s request to continue working beyond retirement age;

· Require employers to inform employees in writing, at least six months in advance, of the date when they intend employees to retire;

· Remove the upper age for unfair dismissal and redundancy rights; and

· Include provisions relating to service-related benefits and occupational pensions.

It will be possible to objectively justify age discrimination. However, the new age discrimination legislation requires employers to think about retirement in a new way. It also requires them to thoroughly review their employment policies across the board as the regulations prohibit direct and indirect discrimination by employers on the grounds of age in the areas of recruitment, promotion and training.