Tackling Age Discrimination against Older Workers:A Comparative Analysis of Laws in the UnitedKingdom and Finland

Abstract

The European Union is experiencing a period of dramatic demographic change. As individuals live longer, and the proportion of ‘prime age’ workers decreases, governments are increasingly seeking to extend working life, particularly by encouraging older workers to remain in employment for longer. This has encouraged a greater focus on reducing age discrimination in employment to enable older workers who wish to continue to work to do so, including through the introduction of age discrimination legislation at the EU and domestic level. However, despite the presence of a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation at the EU level, there are still significant differences across national provisions. This paper considers how age discrimination laws affecting employment differ between EU Member States, focusing particularly on the United Kingdom and Finland.