 |
With an ageing population and new legislation all employers need to review the way they deal with age discrimination within the workplace. This page provides background information and outlines NHS Employers response.
Demographic changeDemographic change, with increasing life expectancy and declining birth rates, means that our population is ageing and will continue to do so well into the middle of the next century. The figures from the Employers Forum on Age and the Office of National Statistics are clear:
The dependency ratio (how many people each person in work is supporting via their taxes) will continue to rise. For the NHS, reliance on school leavers as a main source of recruitment to both professional education and to fill posts is no longer sustainable. Further background information on the demographic issues is available here. Age discriminationIn October 2006, new legislation will make age discrimination illegal in all employment sectors and in vocational training. To help managers take this forward, NHS Employers has published a briefing for the NHS on the recently published draft age regulations which are due to come into effect in 2006. Linked to this, there is also a quick reference guide now available on some of the key existing equalities legislation - such as the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 and the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003. Ageism is prevalent in our daily lives and it will be important to consider how to raise awareness and change attitudes amongst staff - not something that can happen overnight. Age discrimination can take place against people of any age and the new legislation will cover both direct and indirect discrimination, including bullying and harassment. The cost to the NHS could be considerable. It has been estimated (Daily Telegraph/ Cranfield School of Management 03/02/05) that the volume of claims in year one will reach £93 million. Linked research projectsAt NHS Employers we promote and encourage fresh ideas and innovative approaches to managing and developing the NHS workforce. See our new section on evidence based practice from research. Findings from the NHS Employers' survey - Age Diversity: leading the way or way off pace? which was distributed to delegates at HR in the NHS 2005. Age Diversity Reference GroupMembers of NHS Employers' Age Diversity Reference Group have been considering what resources will help colleagues in the NHS prepare for the new age legislation by the time that this comes into force in October 2006. For information about what we are doing to support the NHS see the Age Diversity Work Programme's latest update. Knowledge baseNHS Employers' Knowledge base will allow the NHS to share examples of best practice. Organisations may search across a range of Recruitment and Retention policies including IWL. To submit your own example of good practice, please download the good practice proforma from the database and send this to the recruitment and retention mailbox at NHS Employers. Tools and materialsOrganisations that invest in a truly diverse employee base are already reaping the rewards of proactive policies on diversity. The business case is clear and NHS Employers is working to support organisations to tackle the issues. NHS Employers has prepared a short generic presentation with speaker notes which may be used to raise awareness of Age Diversity matters. You can download the power point presentation and adapt it to suit the requirements of your organisation. We welcome feedback on how this has been used. "Age Diversity - leading the way or off the pace' was the subject of a popular breakout session at HR in the NHS. Delegates who attended the session on Age Diversity at the conference have contributed their thoughts on the business benefits of a diverse workforce as well as sharing information on activity to date in their organisations and further work planned. Last reviewed 6 Feb 2006 |
|
