01 February 2010
The Institute of Directors (IoD) has urged the Government to
raise the default retirement age to 68.
In a IoD statement, the IoD said: "While it is the case that
many people will be capable of doing their jobs past 65 and into
their 70s, it is important that the Government recognises that this
will not be possible for all employees in all job types. In some in
instances it simply won't be possible for employers to adapt jobs
to suit older workers and in small firms it may be completely
impossible to redeploy older workers to suitable jobs.
For these reasons, many employers will continue to need the
flexibility provided by the default retirement age. But this does
not mean that there is no scope for reform. We propose that the
Default Retirement Age is raised, initially to 68. Such a step
would allow people to work longer, while ensuring that employers
retain the flexibility they need to manage their workforces."
