The European Court of Justice has handed down its opinion in the important case of Palacios v Cortefiel Servicios SA, holding that the EU Equal Treatment Framework Directive does not prohibit member states from introducing mandatory retirement ages.
Disagreeing with the Advocate-General, the ECJ held that a general mandatory retirement age did fall within the scope of what the Directive prohibited. However, the ECJ considered that a mandatory retirement age was justified, as it was a proportionate means of achieving the legitimate social aim of promoting employment opportunities and reducing unemployment.
Heyday are currently challenging the UK's retirement provisions before the ECJ.
Thanks to Daniel Barnett employment law (UK) newsletter, which attributes the story to Michael Herman of Times Online.