Retirement age and age-related benefits can stay in place for a while longer with the European Court of Justice's
(ECJ) Advocate General ruling against the Heyday challenge to the UK's compulsory retirement age of employees aged 65.
But proponents on both sides of the issue warn that the story has not yet reached its full conclusion.

Sue Ashtiany, partner at law firm Nabarro, said: "The first stage decision of the ECJ has come down firmly in favour of the status quo. Member states can have a national retirement age if this assists with employment policy. Individual employers can have age discriminatory schemes (for example, age-related benefits) provided they are reasonably justifiable by reference to their business needs. This is a result which is at the further end of the possible outcomes and most in favour of the UK government's interpretation of the European Directive.
The 260 or so people bringing retirement cases that have been 'stayed' will be disheartened by this result.
Employers and the UK government will probably breathe a sigh of relief."
 
The Advocate General has said that the issue must be decided by the UK courts, but the ECJ is yet to make a final decision. If the ECJ agrees, it is likely to be
2009 before employers know whether the retirement age is valid.

Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern, described it as a "disappointing set back" for millions of older workers in the UK but not a disaster.

He told Recruiter: "The Advocate General's opinion confirms that the EU Directive requires age discrimination to be justified.  It's now up to the UK government to prove  to the High Court  that  their  social and employment  policies are important enough to justify kicking people out of work at 65. Until then, older workers face more uncertainty about their right to work."

Although the case will still go to the ECJ and then to the High Court, employment lawyers are predicting that the ECJ will follow the Advocate General's recommendations."
 
Catharine Pusey, director of The Employers Forum on Age, said the announcement leaves the issue of default retirement no further forward and added that it would be wrong for either side to claim a victory.

"The situation still hinges upon whether the UK government can objectively justify the inclusion of a default retirement age in the age discrimination legislation.
Whilst not binding on the ECJ, this decision indicates that the status quo in the UK may be maintained.
This would mean that we rely on the enlightened employers, many of them our members, to promote policies which make no assumptions about people's employability based on age,"
she told Recruiter.

The government has confirmed that it will review the default retirement age before March 2011.

For more news see http://www.recruiter.co.uk