Homer v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police
[2012] UKSC 15
Ratio Decidendi
A requirement for a law degree for promotion to the highest grade could constitute indirect age discrimination where an older employee close to retirement could not realistically obtain the qualification. The employer must objectively justify the PCP.
Facts
Mr Homer, a police intelligence analyst aged 62, was denied promotion because he lacked a law degree. He could not obtain one before retirement. He argued the degree requirement indirectly discriminated on grounds of age.
Judgment Summary
The Supreme Court held the degree requirement was a PCP that put older workers at a particular disadvantage. The case was remitted to the Employment Tribunal to determine whether the requirement was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
Key Quotes
"It is not a answer to say that everyone is treated the same, if a policy hits one group harder than another."
— Baroness Hale
Subsequent Treatment
Leading authority on indirect age discrimination and objective justification.