Limit on redundancy pay was not discriminatory

In Kraft Foods UK Ltd v Hastie [EAT/0024/10], the EAT held that the aim of an enhanced redundancy payment (ERP) scheme - was to compensate an employee for the earnings which they would have earned - if they had remained employed until their retirement at the age of 65.

Therefore, a limit that prevented an employee aged 62 from receiving an ERP that would have been higher than those earnings – did not amount to unlawful age discrimination – since the limit was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

The removal of the taper provision for employees aged 64 from the statutory redundancy pay scheme did not automatically mean that a similar taper or limit on an ERP could not be objectively justified.