Small business owners set to use retirement plans to lay off older workers

Date: 20th May 2009

Around one in seven small businesses that have a mandatory retirement age plan in place are likely to use it to lay off workers over the coming months, it has been claimed.

Research carried out by Help the Aged and Age Concern found that, of the 100 managers polled, a significant number expect to make job cuts in the foreseeable future in order to reduce their overheads.

Notably, many of these are likely to target their older workers, despite the fact that a separate study carried out by the two newly-merged charities found that nine in ten adult workers feel that their right to carry on working past the age of 65 if they so wish should be better protected.

Michelle Mitchell, charity director at Age Concern and Help the Aged, commented: "It's wrong-headed and economically unwise for employers to force people who want to work out of a job just because of their age.

"Older workers make a huge contribution to the economy and will have the skills and experience needed to boost recovery when we come out of recession."

These findings come as the Equality Bill is being passed through parliament, though the government has yet to pledge itself to scrapping the national default retirement age.