- Do you work in the public sector?
- Has your pension has been eroded by recent changes?
- Are you concerned that your retirement planning is no longer adequate?
These cases show that you might be able to make a claim for discrimination – yes – even against the government.
Judges
In 2015, the government introduced a change that forced younger judges to leave the valuable Judicial Pension Scheme.
Because many younger judges are female or from black or minority ethic backgrounds, 230 judges brought a claim for age discrimination, indirect race discrimination, and a breach of equal pay legislation.
Firefighters
The 2015 pension changes also affected firefighters.
Younger firefighters were transferred to a new scheme where they had to work until age 60. If they chose to retire early, say 55, they would lose 21.8% of their pension.
As a result, the Fire Brigade’s Union (FBU) brought over 6,000 claims of unlawful age discrimination on behalf of their members.
What happened?
As the situations were similar, the cases were heard together.
The government’s decision was ruled unfair in January 2017. One year later, the Employment Tribunal dismissed the government’s appeal. In December 2018, the Court of Appeal upheld the original ruling.
The government is now being pushed to change their pension policy.
What this means to you
These cases may set a precedent for public sector employees such as teachers, NHS workers, police and prison officers.
However, as with all employment law claims, the situation is complicated and every case is different.
If you think you’ve been discriminated against, please contact us for a no-obligation discussion. There’s no charge for your initial enquiry, so you have nothing to lose.
We look forward to hearing from you soon.
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