Employment Appeal Tribunal gives guidance on retirement notices

On 18th May 2011 the Employment Appeal Tribunal handed down judgment in Bailey v R & R Plant (Peterborough) Ltd (UKEAT/0370/10/ZT), in which Alex Young acted on behalf of the appellant employee.

In an important decision, the Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that in order to be valid, an employer’s notice to an employee of intended retirement, under the now repealed 2006 Employment Equality (Age) Regulations, has to satisfy certain formalities. On a proper construction of those Regulations, in order to inform the employee of his right to make a request to work beyond the intended retirement age, the employer has to notify the employee not just of the existence of the right but also of the statutory conditions (such as the need for the request to be in writing) which are essential if the employee’s request is to be legally valid. If the employer has failed to give a valid notice by omitting those essential details, then a subsequent attempt to retire the employee against his or her will may result in a finding of unfair dismissal or age discrimination.

Although the statutory retirement scheme has been repealed since 6 April 2011, the decision is an important one as it will affect the validity of notices of retirement that have been issued to employees prior to that date. The case has already provoked discussion on various employment law forums and bulletins.