Tackling Age Discrimination at the heart of Government

As I was saying, I am now retired from my previous employment and, whilst I may decide to take some time off, I certainly don’t rule out seeking employment in future and I was obviously interested when I picked up online chatter about a very interesting job advert.

Unfortunately, this job advert indicated an intention to breach the Equality Act by discriminating on grounds of age (without the slightest indication that this would be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim). So I dropped a note to the person responsible for the job advertisement…

“Dear Mr Cummings,

On your blog (https://dominiccummings.com/2020/01/02/two-hands-are-a-lot-were-hiring-data-scientists-project-managers-policy-experts-assorted-weirdos/) you have advertised employment opportunities, apparently at the heart of Government.

In your blog post, which is an extended job advertisement, you state that “we want to hire some VERY clever young people either straight out of university or recently out with with extreme curiosity and capacity for hard work.”

Section 39(1)(a) of the Equality Act 2010 states that “An employer (A) must not discriminate against a person (B) in the arrangements A makes for deciding to whom to offer employment”. Section 13(1) of the Act defines Direct discrimination as follows; “A person (A) discriminates against another (B) if, because of a protected characteristic, A treats B less favourably than A treats or would treat others.”

Section 5 of the Act identifies “age” as one of the protected characteristics to which the provisions of the Act refers, and subsection (1)(a) of that section explains that “in relation to the protected characteristic of age a reference to a person who has a particular protected characteristic is a reference to a person of a particular age group”, whilst subsection (2) clarifies that “a reference to an age group is a reference to a group of persons defined by reference to age, whether by reference to a particular age or to a range of ages.”

I am a university educated 56-year-old man. As it happens, I am very clever, I have extreme curiosity and capacity for hard work and, as luck would have it, I have recently become available to apply for employment. However, by no means am I part of the age group of “young people” – I am part of the age group of middle-aged people. Your job advertisement makes it clear that you would not consider an application from myself for those opportunities which you are offering to “some VERY clever young people”.

You are therefore directly discriminating against me, in that you are treating me less favourably, because of my age group, than you would treat a younger comparator in the arrangements which you have made for deciding to whom to offer employment. Your conduct contravenes s39(1)(a) of the Equality Act 2010, read with s13(1) and s5 of the Act.

In order to avoid the need for litigation, I invite you to make me an appropriate offer of recompense. You may also wish to consider taking advice from colleagues in Human Resources before advertising jobs in future.

Please let me have your reply within fourteen days.”

I will blog again when I get a reply from Mr Cummings, or perhaps from one of his young assistants. If I don’t get a reply I will have to think about what to do next.