Notices

  • Thursday 17 February 2011
  • No. 4944
  • Vol 141

General notices

Consultation on maintaining an Employer Justified Retirement Age on the abolition of the Default Retirement Age

The Government has announced its intention to phase out the Default Retirement Age (DRA) of sixty-five from 1 October 2011. Transitional arrangements have been published which will enable retirements due before 1 October 2011 to proceed as planned. From October 2011, employers will not be able to require an employee to retire (leave employment on reaching a particular age), save where they decide to apply an Employer Justified Retirement Age (EJRA).

During Michaelmas term 2010, the Personnel Committee and Council considered the potential impact of the abolition of the DRA in the context of the government consultation on these proposed changes. Those bodies agreed that maintaining predictable retirement ages was desirable, not least in relation to academic staff, in order to assist academic and financial planning, to maintain opportunities for career progression, to promote diversity in the workforce, and to avoid invidious performance management processes where members of staff did not wish to retire. Council therefore asked the officers to develop proposals that might enable the University to continue to implement a normal retirement age, for some categories of staff at least, once the DRA was phased out, and to seek legal advice as appropriate on this matter. It was recognised that, in respect of joint appointments in particular, close liaison with the colleges would be essential as the situation developed. The Conference of Colleges was therefore invited to nominate representatives to work with representatives of the Personnel Committee on this issue.

The Personnel Committee is now consulting divisional and college bodies, as well as the joint committees with staff representatives, on a proposal to maintain an EJRA of sixty-seven for all academic and academic-related staff, for an initial period of ten years, which would be coupled with a process under which requests from staff to continue employment beyond the EJRA would be considered against agreed criteria, and with a right of appeal where such requests were turned down.

Further details of the proposals and the consultation exercise may be found in the 'Update on Major Issues' section of the Staff Gateway at: www.ox.ac.uk/staff/staff_communications/update_on_major_issues. Any individuals who wish to comment on the proposals are welcome to do so. The consultation closes on Friday 18 March 2011.

St John's

The College intends to open to the public its collection of medieval vestments on Saturday, 5 March, from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m.  The collection is displayed in the Garden Quadrangle and entrance, free of charge, will be via the Main Lodge.

Appointments

Humanities

Headship

Shearer Carroll West, BA College of William and Mary Virginia, PhD St And, Director of Research, Arts and Humanities Research Council on secondment from a Professorship in the History of Art at Birmingham University, has been appointed to the Headship of the Humanities Division with effect from 1 August 2011.

Medical Sciences

University Lecturer

Experimental Psychology (Perception)

Hannah Elizabeth Smithson, MA PhD Camb; Tutorial Fellow, Pembroke College and University Lecturer in Experimental Psychology (Perception) from 1 July 2011.

Social Sciences

Headship

Professor I. Neary has been appointed to the Headship of the School of Interdisciplinary Area Studies for a period of three years from 1 October 2011.

Visiting Professorships

Social Sciences

Professor Paul Whitehead, BSc Lough, MSc Manc, DPhil Camb. The Social Sciences Division has, on the recommendation of the School of Geography and the Environment, reconferred the title of Visiting Professor from 11 March 2011 to 10 March 2013.

Electoral Boards

Revised Composition of an Electoral Board

The revised composition of the electoral board to the post below, proceedings to fill which are currently in progress, is as follows:

Cheryl and Reece Scott Professorship of Psychiatry

  Appointed by
The Principal of St Hugh's
Mr Vice-Chancellor1
The President of St John's
ex officio
Professor E. Simonoff Council
Professor A. Stein
Council
Professor A. Buchan Medical Sciences Divisional Board
Professor G. Goodwin Medical Sciences Divisional Board
Dr M. Hobbs
Medical Sciences Divisional Board
Professor A. Thapar
Medical Sciences Divisional Board
Dr K. Hadi
Royal College of Psychiatrists
Dr M. Pike Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
Professor K. Nation St John’s College

1Appointed by Mr Vice-Chancellor under the provisions of Statute IX, Sect. 10 and 11 (Supplement (1) to Gazette No. 4633, 9 October 2002, p. 108).