Age Discrimination in Employment

Mr Cowie, 58, was employed by Vesuvius as a Global Business Unit President, having worked his way up through the company for many years. At a meeting in 2018 he was told by the CEO that he was “an old fossil” who “didn’t know how to manage millennials”. In 2019 Mr Cowie was dismissed on notice, on grounds of poor performance. He appealed against his dismissal, and lodged a grievance, neither of which were upheld. Mr Cowie’s replacement was seven years his junior.

In a Judgment which runs to 75 pages, the Tribunal recounts a working environment in which employees in their early 50s were seen as “seasoned” members of staff ready for their “last campaign”. There was a policy within the business that younger candidates (“young blood”) should be sought for management roles and it was alleged that there was a 45 year maximum age for those roles.

The Tribunal found that the reason for Mr Cowie’s dismissal was his age, rendering the dismissal unfair and discriminatory. There will be a separate remedy hearing to determine the level of compensation to be paid by Vesuvius – given Mr Cowie’s senior role and commensurate salary, this is likely to be substantial.