In Compass Group plc v Ayodele the EAT held that the statutory retirement procedure can be breached where requests to work on beyond retirement are not considered in good faith.
Mr Ayodele had a normal retirement age of 65. The employer followed all the requirements of the statutory retirement procedure (SRP), but refused his request to continue working after age 65. Taking into account evidence that the company’s policy was to refuse all requests without giving them genuine consideration, a tribunal found that the SRP had been breached because it had not been conducted in good faith.
The EAT upheld the tribunal’s decision. The employer had breached the SRP even though there was compliance with all the procedural elements. It had a policy of never granting requests to extend an employee’s retirement date. However, the duty to “consider” a request imposes an obligation to do so in good faith, i.e. giving genuine consideration as to whether or not the request should be granted. Simply going through the ‘procedural’ motions with an absolute closed mind does not meet the letter or the spirit of the law.
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