Employment Law Seminars - All Events
Events
Age and Retirement - The New Law
Cost: | See Below |
Location: | Belfast |
Start Date: | 31 March 2011 |
End Date: | 31 March 2011 |
Event Email Reminder
Full Day
The Abolition of the Default Retirement Age – Practical Lessons and Advice for Employers.
Description
Why attend this event?
A September 2010 study by the CIPD and CMI found that nearly a third of the workforce will be over 50 by 2020. The Coalition Government has confirmed its intention to abolish the Default Retirement Age of 65 from October 2011, with interim arrangements from April, so your workforce might have even more over 50s. Indeed, we could well see many more employees choose to stay on at work into their 70s and beyond - another CIPD survey from October 2010 found 41% wanted to stay on beyond 65. And, of course, we have the new NEST pensions that will apply to all workplaces to look forward to from 2012.
In order to terminate employment contracts of older workers, employers will have to justify contractual retirements or dismiss employees on capability grounds - whilst being mindful of disability and age discrimination rights as well as unfair dismissal law. Are there better ways to manage and get more out of an ageing workforce and keep within the law? How can you best meet potential cost increases? Have the recent ECJ cases of Rosenbladt, Georgiev and other cases such as Seldon helped clarify justification?
What will I get out of it - what are the learning outcomes?
PwC will give delegates practical advice and comprehensive notes on a wide range of issues. By the end of the event you will know:
- How to deal with retirements in 2011.
- What the physiological signs of ageing and reductions in capability are.
- The impact on your pension fund and the effects of NEST pensions.
- How to reassess the most costly benefits.
- How to gather evidence and justify retirements.
- The impact of disability discrimination and reasonable adjustment requirements on an ageing workforce.
- How to use incentives and succession planning.
- How to benefit from an ageing workforce.
Event Programme:
| 9.30am | Introduction - Why is this event so important? How should employers and their representatives prepare, not just for legislative change, but for the challenges and opportunities that will exist with an ageing workforce? Scott Alexander ~ Legal-Island |
| 9.45am | Interim Rules for Retirements from April - October 2011 We set out the main terms of the legislation, the differences that you must know and the rules that apply to terminations before October 2011. Easy reference table provided for all delegates. Rebecca McCourt ~ PwC |
| 10.15am | Fitness for Work - Is Age Relevant? The Role of Occupational Health specialists will increase as individual dismissals for incapability become more common. We all have to go sometime but what are the physiological signs of aging and reductions in capability for work? How can OH help employers (and employees) face up to the inevitable need to end employment at the appropriate time? Dr Philip McCrea ~ OH Consultants |
| 11am | Networking and Break |
| 11.20am | Q&A |
| 11.30am | A Pensions Time Bomb? Is there still a need to cut costs if many choose to work past 65? What will be the impact of continued working on the employers' pension fund and your own personal pension? How will the proposed NEST pensions impact in the workplace? Is employers' liability for accrued pension in Tribunal claims now potentially limited or is it increased now that employees may continue working? How can it be capped? What evidence needs to be collated to deal with a claim for pension losses and will this change? Our expert answers all your questions. Stephen Etherington ~ PwC |
| 12.15pm | Cutting the Cloth to Fit and Minimising Cost Many contractual benefits were agreed when retirement was a given fact. Benefits such as long service awards, death in service benefits, additional annual leave, and particularly contractual sick pay are based on average costs that will inevitably increase as employees stay for longer and grow older, as will absence cost. We identify the most costly benefits that need to be addressed anew. Majella McGuinness ~ PwC |
| 12.45pm | Q&A |
| 1pm | Networking and Break |
| 2pm | Justification and Gathering Evidence The law will still allow employers to apply a contractual retirement age if they can justify it. But what exactly does 'justify' mean? How can an employer have faith that their organisation's justifications will stand up in court? Do the recent ECJ rulings in Rosenbladt, Georgiev and other cases such as Seldon help NI employers? You cannot justify taking action without hard evidence. We provide practical guidance on the methods to gather the appropriate information in your organisation. Rebecca McCourt ~ PwC |
| 2.45pm | Networking and Break |
| 3pm | Age, Disability and Reasonable Adjustments An ageing workforce may mean an increasingly disabled workforce for many. What reasonable adjustments might actually be reasonable? What is the law on age and disability discrimination and how might this change after October 2011? A practical guide provided by Majella McGuinness ~ PwC |
| 3.30pm | Incentives and Succession Planning If compulsory retirement is effectively unlawful and justification nigh impossible in many occupations, what can employers do to make retirement more attractive? On the other side, the knee-jerk reaction of many has been to say that succession planning is rendered null and void by the abolition of the DRA. But perhaps it's an opportunity to look at new ways to work flexibly, mentor younger staff, create new knowledge-sharing roles and strengthen the organisation. Or perhaps you can offer lawful incentives to retire? Options and advice provided by Aaron Stewart ~ PwC |
| 4pm | Striking a Balance: Maybe the Nay-Sayers have it all wrong? Surely the benefits of an ageing workforce, that reflects your ageing customer base, will be good for business? Does the abolition of the DRA allow greater succession planning and a longer timescale to pass on skills to younger employees? If you embrace this opportunity in a positive manner, your workplace might be one that benefits everyone and makes you an employer of choice? Sarah Churchman ~ PwC |
| 4.30pm | Close |
Note: OFMDFM has confirmed that its hope and intention is to keep up in NI with GB on the implementation dates, although it cannot guarantee that. OFMDFM has also confirmed that our regulations will be the same as for the rest of the UK, subject to necessary name changes etc. So, the changes will come and we'd advise all employers and employee representatives to start planning now, even if Northern Ireland gets a little bit longer to continue with the default retirement age, which may or may not be the case.
Who is it for?
This event is designed for anyone who will have to deal with the opportunities and challenges created by the abolition of the Default Retirement Age and an ageing workforce, including employers, HR and accountancy professionals, lawyers and employee representatives.
Trainers & Speakers:
This event is being run by Legal-Island in association with PwC. Speakers are mainly drawn from PwC's legal and financial experts throughout the UK but will include external expert Dr Philip McCrea of Occupational Health Consultants, Holywood and Dublin.
Duration ~ Date ~ Location
Full Day Conference: 9.30am-4.30pm
Thursday 31st March 2011
Ramada Hotel, Shaw's Bridge, Belfast
Cost
Three places for the price of Two available on this event.
Single Place Standard Rate: £429+VAT
Reduced Rate: £354+VAT
All organisations with fewer than 50 employees or registered charities (registered at the time of booking) qualify for the Charity/SME Rate. The number of employees includes all branches, subsidiary/parent companies, boards, trusts and federated organisations.
Save £20 if you book and pay online.
Book & Pay Online: Each event page has a link to the booking form at the top. Just fill in the form and click 'Continue'. You can pay by credit card and your details will be sent to us. Confirmation of your booking will be sent to you by email.
Reserve Online & Pay by Invoice: Alternatively, if you require an invoice before paying you can reserve a place online.
Trainers & Speakers:
This event is being run by Legal-Island in association with PwC. Speakers are mainly drawn from PwC's legal and financial experts throughout the UK but will include external expert Dr Philip McCrea of Occupational Health Consultants, Holywood and Dublin.
Sarah Churchman ~ Head of Diversity & Engagement, PwC
Steve Etherington ~ Director, PwC
Rebecca McCourt ~ Senior Manager, PwC
Dr Phillip McCrea ~ Managing Director, Occupational Health Consultants
Majella McGuinness ~ Manager, PwC
Aaron Stewart ~ Director, PwC
