For intermediaries - FAQs

The answers provided in these FAQs do not constitute 'legal guidance' nor are they a statement of Government views.

Recruitment Agencies

Should we be monitoring and measuring the ages of job-seekers who are registering with our employment agency and using our services?

Yes you should. But you should also monitor and measure the ages of the candidates you are putting through to your clients, keeping track of the ages of those being called for interviews – and those being selected. In this way you can assist your clients with their own age monitoring and measuring.

You can track the data using 10 year age bands, although both ourselves and the Employers Forum on Age would recommend employers to use 5 year bands, not only for their existing employees but also for the new ‘hires’ they are taking on.

As a recruitment agency we still get asked by our clients who are looking for staff to supply them with candidates who fit narrow stereotypes. In the case of age, what should we do?

The Age Regulations place a requirement on you not to discriminate against your own employees, the employees you sub-contract to others or the jobseekers who come to you on the grounds of their age. However, like other employers, you might be able to do so if it is in pursuit of a legitimate aim, the discrimination can be objectively justified and it is proportionate.

It is unlawful to instruct others to discriminate on the basis of age, so if you are asked by a client to supply them with job candidates or contract staff of a particular age profile, you will need to obtain a letter from the client stating the reason (and their justification for giving you this instruction). Failure to do so will leave you exposed and in danger of being the respondent in an Employment Tribunal case where unlimited compensation awards can be made.

Should the client subsequently victimise your agency because of your action in following the Regulation’s requirements, you could consider seeking legal redress.

Our recruitment agency specialises in older job candidates, can we continue to do that?

Although, the Regulations do not permit positive discrimination in favour of certain age groups, so-called ‘positive action’ is allowed. This means that for instance, organisations can seek to balance the age profile of their employees, or training providers can put on special programmes targeted at particular age audiences – as long as they do not refuse applications from people outside that specific age group.

In your case it means if younger job applicants seek to be registered and represented by you, you cannot refuse them. However, you will need to be careful about the way you market yourselves and your services.

If you want to continue to focus narrowly on your current age range of jobseekers, then like any other employer or intermediary seeking to discriminate on the grounds of age, you will need to identify what the legitimate aim is, come up with an objective justification for pursuing this approach, demonstrate that it’s proportionate – and that you couldn’t have achieved the same result by following a less discriminatory approach.

Our recruitment agency / company uses assessment centres and psychometric testing to help in our selection processes. It has been suggested to us that these may indirectly discriminate against certain age groups? Is there a potential problem?

Yes there could be. It is certainly the case that the majority of older candidates will be unfamiliar with these techniques. You could help mitigate the issue by sending job applicants information about your recruitment and selection processes in advance, perhaps together with a sample psychometric test so they know what to expect and are prepared.

We are supplying contract workers to an overseas operation of one of our UK clients, are those contract workers covered by the Age Discrimination Regulations?

Probably, but we would advise you to seek legal advice in respect to particular individuals.

The regulations cover workers who do all or part of their work in Great Britain (GB); work outside the GB for an employer with a place of business in GB, where they do their work for the purpose of the benefit of the GB business and they were resident in the GB when they were offered the job, or at any time during their employment.