Champions for Older People Recent developments in Age Discrimination issues in Europe Richard Baker...

Champions for Older

People

Recent developments in Age Discrimination issues in Europe

Richard Baker

National Development ManagerAge Concern England

ChairAnti-discrimination Expert Group

AGE

NIESR, LondonSeptember 29 2005

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People

Introducing Age Concern and AGE

• Age Concern

– England wide Federation of 420 charitable organisations – NGO’s

– Range of functions – influencing, services, development, representation and advocacy

– Sister organisations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

• AGE

– European Federation of National and Regional organisations

– 150 organisations across EU25 plus Norway and Candidate countries and European age networks

– Influencing, stimulation of collaboration at EU level, development of member organisations

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Presentation framework

• Age and European policy

• Age discrimination – European action

• Impacts across EU 25

• Emerging issues

• New developments

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Age and European policy – the demographic challenge

• Older population

– Longer life

– Lower fertility

– Stable overall population numbers

– Baby boomers – changing expectations

• Changing population

– Enlargement

– Freedom of movement and migration

– Diversity

• Regional diversity in trends

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Older Europe

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The current European agenda on age

• Opportunities and challenges of ageing

– Economic development and employment of older workers

– Inclusion and anti-discrimination

– Pensions

– Health

– Broad impact on public finances – ECOFIN reports

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The age issue – European targets

• Lisbon strategy (2000) – key driver for European economic development and social inclusion

• High levels of employment and economic contribution

• Europe-wide targets for older workers by 2010

– 50% employment rate for people aged 55 to 64

– 5 year increase in the average age of labour market exit.

• Key issues – Kok report

– Jobs

– Skills

– Discrimination

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Current performance

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European timetable on age discrimination

• 1957 - Treaty of Rome

• 1997 - Treaty of Amsterdam – article 13

• 2000 - Race Directive, Employment Directive, Community Action programme

• 2003 – Transposition deadline for Directives unless delay sought

• 2004 – New members join EU – adopt acquis communitaire

• 2006 – Final deadline for transposition

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The impact of Age Discrimination

• Economic costs – UK estimates range from £16 to £31 billion per annum in reduced output

• Loss of Government revenue and increased benefits – UK estimates of £3 to £5 billion per annum

• Adding to impact of increasing ‘dependency’ ratio - those drawing from public funds to those contributing – for EU rise from 24-27% between 2000 and 2010

• Long term social exclusion and poverty amongst older people disconnected from work and society

• For individuals - exclusion from work, denials of treatment, goods and services

• Failure to maximise productive resource to wider society - volunteering, caring, family support, social enterprise

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The Employment Directive

• Definitions

– Direct, Indirect, Harrassment, Victimisation, Instructions

• Scope

– Access to employment and training, Terms and conditions, Membership of TU’s

• Exemptions

– Genuine Occupational Requirements, Positive Action, Exemptions

• Consultation and promotion

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Evaluating the Directive

• Concerns

– Restricted scope

– Weak provisions – e.g no requirement for Equality bodies

– Exemptions and loopholes

• Positive effects

– Bans age discrimination in employment

– Part of approach to strategic issue

– Platform for wider debate about age discrimination

– Interface with broader equality agenda

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Achieving Age Equality

Integrated strategy

Legislation

Culture change Services

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Slow early progress on Directive – AGE Annual reports

• December 2003 – transposition deadline

– 4 states transposed

– 3 sought delay

– 8 failed to transpose or seek delay• December 2004

– Still patchy but more progress

– Infringement proceedings

– Interesting developments in some states

• Cross –cutting approaches

• Varied practice on consultation

• Inadequate focus on article 6

– Situation in 10 new members similar to EU 15

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AGE Annual Report 2005• Most countries now transposed or close to transposition

– Estonia and Greece awaited

– Germany, Sweden and UK legally delayed

• Some interesting cross-strand equality initiatives

– Existing – Ireland, Belgium

– New – Lithuania, Hungary, Sweden, UK emerging

• Integration of anti-discrimination into wider ageing or active ageing strategies

– UK, France, Czech Republic

• Some sub-national initiatives dependent on political systems

– North Rhine Westphalia, Wales, Prabant

• Specific issues and cases

– Real issues about article 6

• inadequate policy analysis

• Extension to social protection systems

• Heyday challenge to UK transposition

– Cross-strand cases – Rutherford in the UK

– Post Directive cases - Mangold v Rudiger Helm in Germany

– Challenge to lower age limit for Presidency in Lithuania!

– High proportion of age cases in total equality workload for Commissions – eg 30% in Lithuania and the Netherlands, 51 in first year in France

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Looking forward – the evolving European age agenda

• Continuing focus on employment of older workers

– Kok report

– EU employment strategy

• Impact of ageing on public finances – ECOFIN reports

• Ageing and regional economic development – Cohesion policy

• European Commission lead debate on demographic change – green paper in 2005

– Life-course approach

– Inter-generationalism

– Economic and social contributions

• Open co-ordinations on health and pensions

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Looking forward - Ageing and the wider equality agenda • European populations becoming older and more diverse

– Older population diversifying

• Older people face discrimination

– Age

– Other reasons – eg women’s pensions, isolation due to race and migration, language

• Some interest in increasing debate

– Causes of disadvantage and discrimination

– Multiple discrimination

– Human rights – life, family, health, employment

– Interest in unified equality and diversity agenda

• Need for legal framework

• Narrative on equality

• But political context at EU level not conducive for development

– Mainstream agenda focused on economic and political issues

– Disconnect between equality and mainstream agenda

– Unanimity required in Council on article 13

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What coming up – Europe and equality• 2000-2006 programming period concluding

– Conference and progress reports – 27/28 November

• European Commission Green Paper on Equality actions – June 2004

– Enlargement – race, Roma, migration, employment

– Lisbon – growth and employment

– Age – Focus on Employment but noted wider concerns

• Report back on Green Paper – Den Haag – November 2004 proposed

– EU mapping study on national legislative arrangements – reporting 2007

– European Year of Equal Opportunities – 2007

• Platform for further action?

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NGO future actions

• Continuing focus on quality of Employment Directive

– Use of case law and legal challenges

– Building awareness and access to rights

• Broadening the agenda in Europe

– Age discrimination in goods, facilities and services

– Proposal for a draft Directive

– Multiple identity and discrimination

– Promoting equality machinery

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Conclusions• Ageing increasingly high on EU agenda as a cross-

cutting theme for policy

• Key interactions with high level European priorities

– Employment, economic development and budget impacts

– Inclusion issues

– Underperformance on key targets

• Employment Directive has lead to step change in anti-discrimination agenda

– Ongoing challenges in implementation

– High levels of cases - ongoing refinement likely

• Debate on next steps developing

– Scope for further change long term and incremental

– Need to continue to make connections between agendas and narratives

– Can Europe respond?