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Age discrimination: Decision on age grounds to issue dismissal notice to redundant employee prior to formal consultation was justified

In Woodcock v Cumbria Primary Care Trust [2012] IRLR 491 CA, the Court of Appeal held that the employer was justified in issuing a redundancy dismissal notice to an employee prior to formal consultation so as to avoid his remaining in its employment until his 50th birthday.

Key points

  • The employment tribunal and the EAT were correct in holding that, although the employer's decision to issue a redundancy dismissal notice prior to a formal consultation meeting was directly discriminatory on grounds of age, such treatment was justified in the particular circumstances of the case and was therefore not unlawful.