On 1 October, Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 came into force, banning discrimination within the workplace on the grounds of age. According to the DTI, almost one in five people are put off having a job because of a reference to age.
The legislation could have a big impact on graduate recruiters, so the AGR has launched a briefing paper ëAge Discrimination and Recruitmentí which warns members of potential pitfalls and provides in depth advice and information to ensure their practices are within and embrace the spirit of the law.
The DTI has estimated that there will be 8,000 tribunal claims for age discrimination a year and that 75% could related to recruitment and promotion so it is essential that graduate recruiters are aware of key aspects of the new regulation.
Andrew Brown, Employment Law Partner at solicitors Herbert Smith worked with the AGR on the paper, which advises on a range of recruitment issues including language used in recruitment marketing, the application process and shortlisting, interviewing and selection. For example, advertising for a ëyoung, dynamic professionalí or using words such as ëenergeticí could be seen to be discriminatory.
The briefing includes examples of legal cases in countries such as Australia and Ireland, where similar legislation is already in force.
Carl Gilleard, Chief Executive of the AGR says, ìThis new legislation could potentially have a big impact on recruiting methods for graduates. Most of our members will already have practices in place that are not discriminatory and have policies that encourage diversity in every sense. But there are always complications when new legislation comes into force and this guide provides plain-speaking advice to ensure they are not putting their organisations at unnecessary risk of legal action.î
The briefing paper can be downloaded from the AGRís website http://www.agr.org.uk/publicationlibrary.html It is available free for AGR members or at a cost of 10 to non-members.
AGR warns graduate recruiters of potential impact of age discrimination legislation
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