Q&A

Question: Can I force an employee to retire even if they are eligible for unfair dismissal?

No, you cannot force an employee to retire. If you have concerns about an employee’s performance then you must follow proper procedures for terminating them. Even if your employee is not eligible for a claim of unfair dismissal, for example, they have not been working for you for over 6 months or they are earning more than $130,000. You should also be aware of the Age Discrimination Act 2004 (Cth) when asking an employee to retire. Even if an employee is not eligible to make an unfair dismissal application they may be able to make a complaint under the Age Discrimination Act 2004 (Cth) for age discrimination.