On October 16, 2010, the European Court of Justice upheld mandatory retirement ages in the European Union (EU). The court ruled that such policies do not violate prohibitions against age discrimination because they serve the legitimate public interest of increasing employment. The case was decided mere months after the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) released its first major report on inequality in the EU. The EU prohibits discrimination on the grounds of gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, and sexual orientation — specifically enforcing workplace equality through the EU Framework Directive for Equal Treatment in Employment and Occupation.

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Learn more about the European Union and age discrimination from the JURIST news archive.

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