Heyday loses retirement age challenge

Employers can continue to retire employees at 65 (at least for the time being) following the High Court's decision today in the much publicised Heyday case. The High Court judgment follows the ruling by the European Court of Justice in March 2009 which stated that in order to retain the retirement age of 65, the Government had to show that retiring employees at that age is a proportionate means of achieving legitimate social and employment policy aims.

The Government has now managed to convince the High Court that the retirement age is justified, but only just. The judge said that there were compelling reasons for the retirement age to rise and what appears to have saved the Government was the fact that it has already promised to review the retirement age next year (brought forward from the original date in 2011). Even though Heyday failed in its challenge to have the retirement age scrapped, there are now strong indications that the age at which employers can lawfully retire employees will be increased next year.  If the Government does not make a change, it is likely that another case arguing exactly the same points as were argued in Heyday will start again, and that next time, the outcome will be different.