The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006
| Cited as: | SI 2006/1031 |
| Jurisdiction: | UK Non-devolved |
2006No. 1031
EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING
AGE DISCRIMINATION
The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006
3rdApril2006
1stOctober2006
CONTENTS
PART 1
GENERAL
1. Citation, commencement and extent
2. Interpretation
3. Discrimination on grounds of age
4. Discrimination by way of victimisation
5. Instructions to discriminate
6. Harassment on grounds of age
PART 2
DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING
7. Applicants and employees
8. Exception for genuine occupational requirement etc
9. Contract workers
10. Meaning of employment and contract work at establishment in Great Britain
11. Pension schemes
12. Office-holders etc
13. Police
14. Serious Organised Crime Agency
15. Barristers
16. Advocates
17. Partnerships
18. Trade organisations
19. Qualifications bodies
20. The provision of vocational training
21. Employment agencies, careers guidance etc
22. Assisting persons to obtain employment etc
23. Institutions of further and higher education
24. Relationships which have come to an end
PART 3
OTHER UNLAWFUL ACTS
25. Liability of employers and principals
26. Aiding unlawful acts
PART 4
GENERAL EXCEPTIONS FROM PARTS 2 AND 3
27. Exception for statutory authority
28. Exception for national security
29. Exceptions for positive action
30. Exception for retirement
31. Exception for the national minimum wage
32. Exception for provision of certain benefits based on length of service
33. Exception for provision of enhanced redundancy payments to employees
34. Exception for provision of life assurance cover to retired workers
PART 5
ENFORCEMENT
35. Restriction of proceedings for breach of Regulations
36. Jurisdiction of employment tribunals
37. Burden of proof: employment tribunals
38. Remedies on complaints in employment tribunals
39. Jurisdiction of county and sheriff courts
40. Burden of proof: county and sheriff courts
41. Help for persons in obtaining information etc
42. Period within which proceedings to be brought
PART 6
SUPPLEMENTAL
43. Validity of contracts, collective agreements and rules of undertakings
44. Application to the Crown etc
45. Application to House of Commons staff
46. Application to House of Lords staff
47. Duty to consider working beyond retirement
48. Duty to consider working beyond retirement - transitional provisions
49. Amendments, transitionals, repeals and revocations
SCHEDULE 1-
Norwegian part of the Frigg Gas Field
SCHEDULE 2-
Pension schemes
Part 1-
Pension schemes - general
Part 2-
Excepted rules, practices, actions and decisions relating to occupational pension schemes
Part 3-
Excepted rules, practices, actions and decisions relating to contributions by employers to personal pension schemes
SCHEDULE 3-
Questionnaire of person aggrieved
SCHEDULE 4-
Reply by respondent
SCHEDULE 5-
Validity of contracts, collective agreements and rules of undertakings
Part 1-
Validity and revision of contracts
Part 2-
Collective agreements and rules of undertakings
SCHEDULE 6-
Duty to consider working beyond retirement
SCHEDULE 7-
Duty to consider working beyond retirement - transitional provisions
SCHEDULE 8-
Amendments to legislation and related transitional provisions
Part 1-
Primary legislation
Part 2-
Other legislation
SCHEDULE 9-
Repeals and revocations
A draft of these Regulations was laid before Parliament in accordance with paragraph 2 of Schedule 2 to the European Communities Act 1972 1, and was approved by resolution of each House of Parliament;
The Secretary of State, who is a Minister designated for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 in relation to discrimination 2, makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2(2):-
PART 1
GENERAL
Citation, commencement and extent
1.-
(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006, and shall come into force on 1st October 2006.
(2) Any amendment, repeal or revocation made by these Regulations has the same extent as the provision to which it relates.
(3) Subject to that, these Regulations do not extend to Northern Ireland.
Interpretation
2.-
(1) In these Regulations, references to discrimination are to any discrimination falling within regulation 3 (discrimination on grounds of age), regulation 4 (discrimination by way of victimisation) or regulation 5 (instructions to discriminate) and related expressions shall be construed accordingly, and references to harassment shall be construed in accordance with regulation 6 (harassment on grounds of age).
(2) In these Regulations-
"1996 Act" means the Employment Rights Act 1996 3;
"act" includes a deliberate omission;
"benefit", except in regulation 11 and Schedule 2 (pension schemes), includes facilities and services;
"commencement date" means 1st October 2006;
"Crown employment" means -
(a) service for purposes of a Minister of the Crown or government department, other than service of a person holding a statutory office; or
(b) service on behalf of the Crown for purposes of a person holding a statutory office or purposes of a statutory body;
"detriment" does not include harassment within the meaning of regulation 6;
"employment" means employment under a contract of service or of apprenticeship or a contract personally to do any work, and related expressions (such as "employee" and "employer") shall be construed accordingly, but this definition does not apply in relation to regulation 30 (exception for retirement) or to Schedules 2, 6, 7 and 8;
"Great Britain" includes such of the territorial waters of the United Kingdom as are adjacent to Great Britain;
"Minister of the Crown" includes the Treasury and the Defence Council;
"proprietor", in relation to a school, has the meaning given by section 579 of the Education Act 1996 4;
"relevant member of the House of Commons staff" means any person who was appointed by the House of Commons Commission or who is a member of the Speaker's personal staff;
"relevant member of the House of Lords staff" means any person who is employed under a contract of employment with the Corporate Officer of the House of Lords;
"school", in England and Wales, has the meaning given by section 4 of the Education Act 1996 5, and, in Scotland, has the meaning given by section 135(1) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 6, and references to a school are to an institution in so far as it is engaged in the provision of education under those sections;
"service for purposes of a Minister of the Crown or government department" does not include service in any office mentioned in Schedule 2 (Ministerial offices) to the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 7;
"statutory body" means a body set up by or in pursuance of an enactment, and "statutory office" means an office so set up; and
"worker" in relation to regulations 32 and 34 and to Schedule 2, means, as the case may be-
(a) an employee;
(b) a person holding an office or post to which regulation 12 (office-holders etc) applies;
(c) a person holding the office of constable;
(d) a partner within the meaning of regulation 17 (partnerships);
(e) a member of a limited liability partnership within the meaning of that regulation;
(f) a person in Crown employment;
(g) a relevant member of the House of Commons staff;
(h) a relevant member of the House of Lords staff.
(3) In these Regulations references to "employer", in their application to a person at any time seeking to employ another, include a person who has no employees at that time.
Discrimination on grounds of age
3.-
(1) For the purposes of these Regulations, a person ("A") discriminates against another person ( "B") if-
(a) on grounds of B's age, A treats B less favourably than he treats or would treat other persons, or
(b) A applies to B a provision, criterion or practice which he applies or would apply equally to persons not of the same age group as B, but-
(i) which puts or would put persons of the same age group as B at a particular disadvantage when compared with other persons, and
(ii) which puts B at that disadvantage,
and A cannot show the treatment or, as the case may be, provision, criterion or practice to be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
(2) A comparison of B's case with that of another person under paragraph (1) must be such that the relevant circumstances in the one case are the same, or not materially different, in the other.
(3) In this regulation-
(a) "age group" means a group of persons defined by reference to age, whether by reference to a particular age or a range of ages; and
(b) the reference in paragraph (1)(a) to B's age includes B's apparent age.
Discrimination by way of victimisation
4.-
(1) For the purposes of these Regulations, a person ("A") discriminates against another person ( "B") if he treats B less favourably than he treats or would treat other persons in the same circumstances, and does so by reason that B has-
(a) brought proceedings against A or any other person under or by virtue of these Regulations;
(b) given evidence or information in connection with proceedings brought by any person against A or any other person under or by virtue of these Regulations;
(c) otherwise done anything under or by reference to these Regulations in relation to A or any other person; or
(d) alleged that A or any other person has committed an act which (whether or not the allegation so states) would amount to a contravention of these Regulations,
or by reason that A knows that B intends to do any of those things, or suspects that B has done or intends to do any of them.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to treatment of B by reason of any allegation made by him, or evidence or information given by him, if the allegation, evidence or information was false and not made (or, as the case may be, given) in good faith.
Instructions to discriminate
5.For the purposes of these Regulations, a person ("A") discriminates against another person ( "B") if he treats B less favourably than he treats or would treat other persons...
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