Speaking at an age discrimination conference in London, Acas Chair Rita Donaghy said: "A lot of organisations are under the impression that the regulations will not affect them - this simply is not true. Age discrimination can affect employees of any age, not just the young and old. The legislation comes into effect in October and the
frightening fact is that recent research shows around 80 per cent of UK organisations are not training or informing their staff about it."
Bill Moore, North East Acting Area Director of Acas, said: "Age discrimination could be the most insidious of all discriminations. Employers will need to examine their recruitment and retention procedures, training, how they pay their workers, and even how they handle retirement, to make sure they conform to the legislation and good practice.
"Many organisations have been waiting for the final regulations to be published. Now that they have, it is obvious that employers will need to examine the terms and conditions of all their employees to ensure they comply. The October deadline will soon arrive so this issue must not be put in the "pending" tray.''
Acas has over 30 years' expertise in good employment practice. Its new guidance - Age and the workplace - is available free online from the Acas website (www.acas.org.uk) or from its publications orderline on 08702 42 90 90. If employers need further help, they can register online for one of Acas' training courses, which are available throughout Britain.
The employer guidance covers the key issues, including training, equal opportunities, recruitment, promotion, performance appraisals, sickness pay, conditions, benefits, redundancy, pensions and retirement. It will help employers to recognise that being
age-positive is a business advantage, not just a legal requirement.
Ms Donaghy concluded: "This is an excellent opportunity for employers to go beyond compliance and increase their productivity. Acas' good-practice training and guidance will help bosses to recruit, develop and retain the very best available talent, regardless of age, and eliminate some very outdated prejudices."
