Council staff can work past 65

Published by webmaster for Leicestershire County Council in Communities

County council staff in Leicestershire will be able to work past retirement age if they want to, it was announced today.

Leicestershire County Council has decided to end compulsory retirement at 65.

The Council’s Employment Committee took the decision after the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations, which came into effect last October, made it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of age in employment.

Although the regulations set a default retirement age of 65, the Council has decided to give staff more flexibility.

Deputy Leader of the County Council, Nick Rushton, said: “This is a really positive step forward.

“We value our employees and the skills, knowledge and experience they have as individuals.

“This presents an opportunity to acknowledge and retain the expertise of our older workers and at the same time tap into their skills to help develop younger employees. It’s a win-win situation.”

The no retirement age policy has been implemented with immediate effect.

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Press release issued: February 5 2007