UK 
United States
A growing proportion of the UK workforce is over 50 years of age. People are living longer than ever before and with the current economic state, may not be financially able to retire at a time when they originally wanted to. So, how can employers support a generation of older people remaining in the workforce?
Although many companies embrace their older workers and appreciate their experience, a recent Tribunal case – Jones v Tango Networks UK Ltd and P Hesketh – indicates that not all companies are of the same opinion.
The case
Mr Jones was awarded £71,441.36 for unfair dismissal and age discrimination. In a nutshell, the case involved Mr Jones being criticised by a line manager about his performance. When returning from leave and a short period of sickness, he was asked to attend a performance appraisal. He suggested that this was arranged not because of his performance, but due to his age (late 50’s). He subsequently raised a grievance, which was not successful. However, the Tribunal said that the grievance hadn’t been dealt with correctly and that there was no objective evidence that he was not meeting his sales targets.
There were also comments which had been made about wanting a high energy, youthful and energetic sales team and that they didn’t want a team of bald-headed 50-year-old men.
