Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2011 | Page 61

A
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FOR THE OVER 60s
Island
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ISLAND
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is great
continue working beyond the official

to 66 earlier than planned. He added

retirement age.

that around seven million people are

The move to phase out default
retirement age – known as DRA - is

currently not saving enough to meet
their retirement aspirations.

among several steps the Government

There has been mixed reaction to

is taking to help and encourage people

the proposals, with many campaigners

to work longer. Other measures put

welcoming them while some employers

into place include reviewing when the

have taken a different approach

state pension age should increase to

to B&Q, claiming they could make

66 and re-establishing the link between

workforce planning more difficult.

can make to the workplace.
"Employers have nothing to fear from
this change. This is an outdated policy

Chris Ball, chief executive of The Age

and the removal of forced retirement

and Employment Network, said: "Many

is an opportunity to put policies and

"With the DRA removed there is no

employers will need to adopt a totally

processes in place which make the most

reason to keep employees' right to

new mindset. They will need to actively

of an age-diverse workforce."

request working beyond retirement or

plan and assist workers to be able to go

for employers to give them a minimum

on contributing to the success of their

for The Chartered Institute of Personnel

of six months notice of retirement.

organisations.

and Development, added: "Our research

earnings and the basic state pension.
A department spokesperson said:

"Although the government is

"This may mean adapting work

Diahnah Worman, the diversity adviser

has shown that many employees wish

proposing to remove the DRA, it will

practices and work places. It will

to work past retirement for differing

still be possible for individual employers

certainly mean providing opportunities

reasons and many employers are

to operate a compulsory retirement

to train or retrain and to work

already benefiting from allowing such

age, provided that they can objectively

more flexibly, and, crucially, actually

flexibility."

justify it. Examples could include air

recruiting people in their 50s and 60s

traffic controllers and police officers."

where they may not have done so in the

Pensions minister Steve Webb

past."

admitted in an interview in The

Rachel Krys, campaign director of

Independent newspaper that people

anti-ageism group the Employers Forum

face a "hell of a shock" when they

on Age said of the default retirement

reach retirement because of their failure

age: "Its removal is simply common

to save. He agreed the basic state

sense. With rising life expectancies,

pension of £97 a week is not enough to

and people staying fitter for longer, it is

live on, and confirmed the Government

archaic to assume that someone's age

would raise the state retirement age

is an indicator of the contribution they

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