High Court upholds 60-year mandatory retirement age, dismisses discrimination petition
The petitioner, Charles Gitau had argued that the retirement policy violated constitutional rights to equality, dignity and fair labour practices.
Public and private sector workers are mandated to retire at the age of 60, or 65 for persons with disabilities, the High Court has ruled, dismissing a petition that sought to abolish the policy on claims of discrimination.
In a ruling, Justice Mugambi declared the age limits to be lawful, reasonable, and non-discriminatory, rejecting a constitutional petition filed by Charles Chege Gitau.
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Gitau had argued that the retirement policy violated constitutional rights to equality, dignity and fair labour practices.
He claimed it reinforced negative stereotypes about the productivity of older workers, failed to create guaranteed employment for young people and conflicted with existing exemptions for judges, Members of Parliament and university researchers.
The court found that it had jurisdiction to determine the matter, as it questioned the constitutionality of legislation rather than arising from a direct employer-employee dispute.
“The petitioner has not established unlawful discrimination,” Justice Mugambi ruled, explaining that differences in retirement ages for certain roles are based on distinct legal and institutional frameworks.
He added that setting a retirement age is a policy decision within the constitutional mandate of the Public Service Commission (PSC) and does not amount to a fundamental right.
The judge also pointed out that both the PSC Act and its regulations provide for retaining exceptional talent on post-retirement contracts where rare skills are required.
“In the absence of evidence of unconstitutional discrimination or arbitrary treatment, the petition is dismissed,” Justice Mugambi said, adding that no order for costs would be made due to the public interest nature of the matter.
The PSC and the Federation of Kenya Employers, who opposed the petition, defended the retirement age policy as anchored in law, aimed at ensuring fairness, facilitating workforce planning and promoting youth employment through affirmative action.
Gitau had sought court orders to scrap the mandatory retirement age and compel employers to allow staff to continue working beyond the set limits, but the court found no merit in the request.
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