Saying a colleague would struggle with tech ‘is age discrimination’

By Khumaer Bayas On Mar 11, 2025

Telling workers that they are “too old” to get to grips with new equipment or technology is legally discriminatory, a judge has said.

The comment came in a case involving an engineer who complained that a younger colleague had suggested during a row about a laptop that he would struggle with technology.

Mark Braithwaite, who is now in his sixties, told an employment tribunal that the comment had upset him greatly, triggering the thought that “my time is up”. But now Braithwaite — who worked for Refresco, a drinks company — has been awarded nearly £25,000 after a judge ruled that the remark displayed a “discriminatory mindset” and affected him “significantly”.

A judge ruled that there had been a “discriminatory mindset” towards the worker

DARREN STAPLES/BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES

Braithwaite was employed as a control engineer at the company, where he dealt with

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