FAW retirement ruling is ageist, says campaigner
THE Football Association of Wales has been accused of breaching equality legislation by forcing board members to retire at the age of 65.
From next year, people over that age will be disqualified from standing for the executive board and area councils.
But pensioners’ campaigner Roy Jones, from Colwyn Bay, has received legal advice that the ban is unlawful, and is now examining ways in which it could be challenged. According to Mr Jones and his advisers, the Equalities Act 2010 made it unlawful to discriminate against people on the basis of age. But FAW chief executive Jonathan Ford argues that because board membership is unpaid, the Act’s provisions do not apply.
However, a letter to the FAW from Clare Lane, director of the office of the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales, said: “The issues raised within Mr Jones’ query are very important ones. Fundamentally the issue relates to the rights of older people within the Equality Act 2010, which now recognises ‘age’ as one of the protected characteristics.
“The age discrimination provisions of the Equality Act which relate specifically to employment under Section 49 do not categorise directors who are ‘not entitled to remuneration’ as employees. The Equality Act 2010, however, does not relate only to employment related discrimination, nor does it state that private limited companies are exempt from its provisions. The definition of ‘association’ contained within the Equality Act 2010 Part 7 defines an ‘association’ as ‘any group of 25 or more members’. This definition clearly applies to the Football Association of Wales.
“I therefore consider that the Equality Act 2010 establishes clear equalities duties upon the Football Association of Wales and that your organisation has no exemption from this legislation. I must stress in no uncertain terms that ‘age’ is an equal protected characteristic of equal standing in law to race, gender, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, gender reassignment, disability.”
FAW President David Griffiths, who will be 73 this year, did not wish to comment. But a source close to the FAW’s leadership said: “The whole point of the change is to bring on younger people. Around 60% of board members are in their 60s or older, and that’s not representative of the population. In stopping people aged 65 from standing, the FAW is doing the same as Uefa, the English FA, the Scottish FA and the Northern Ireland FA. The legal advice the FAW has received is that the decision is entirely lawful.
“If anyone wishes to challenge that, they can go to court.”