Technical Report On Cell Phone Jammers

Technical Report On Cell Phone Jammers Cell phone jammer is device used to prevent cellular phones from receiving signal from base station. They can be used anywhere but mostly used where phone call would be disruptive. Cell phones are very useful because we are able to contact anyone at anytime but sometimes it become nuisance. Some cell phone users dont know when to stop talking. Jammers are used at classrooms, temples, churches where silence is required. It creates a temporary dead zone to all cell phone traffic in their air system. How a Cell Phone Jammer works Disrupting a cell phone is the same as jamming any other type of radio communication. A cell phone works by communicating with its service network through a cell tower or base station. Cell towers divide a city into small areas. As a cell-phone user drives down the street, the signal is handed from tower to tower. Jamming device transmits on the same radio frequencies as the cell phone, disrupting the communication between the phone and the cell-phone base station in the tower. Its a called a denial-of-service attack. The jammer denies service of the radio spectrum to the cell-phone users within range of the jamming device. Cell phone Jamming Device Jamming devices overpower the cell phone by transmitting a signal on the same frequency and at a high enough power that the two signals collide and cancel each other out. Cell phones are designed to add power if they experience low-level interference, so the jammer must recognize and match the power increase from the phone. Cell phones are full-duplex devices, which mean they use two separate frequencies, one for talking and one for listening simultaneously. Some jammers block only one of the frequencies used by cell phones, which has the effect of blocking both. The phone is tricked into thinking there is no service because it can receive only one of the frequencies. Less complex devices block only one group of frequencies, while sophisticated jammers can block several types of networks at once to head off dual-mode or tri-mode phones that automatically switch among different network types to find an open signal. Some of the high-end devices block all frequencies at once, and others can be tuned to specific frequencies. To jam a cell phone, you need a device that broadcasts on the correct frequencies. Although different cellular systems process signals differently, all cell-phone networks use radio signals that can be interrupted. GSM, used in digital cellular and PCS-based systems, operates in the 900-MHz and 1800-MHz bands in Europe and Asia and in the 1900-MHz band in the United States. Jammers can broadcast on any frequency and are effective against AMPS, CDMA, TDMA, GSM, PCS, DCS, iDEN and Nextel systems. Old-fashioned analog cell phones and todays digital devices are equally susceptible to jamming. The range of the jammer depends on its power and the local environment, which may include hills or walls of a building that block the jamming signal. Low-powered jammers block calls in a range of about 30 feet (9 m). Higher-powered units create a cell-free zone as large as a football field. Units used by law enforcement can shut down service up to 1 mile (1.6 km) from the device. Inside Cell phone Jammers Cell-phone jammers are very basic devices. It just has an on/off switch and a light that indicates its on. More complex devices have switches to activate jamming at different frequencies. Components of a jammer: Antenna Every jamming device has an antenna to send the signal. Some are contained within an electrical cabinet. On stronger devices, antennas are external to provide longer range and may be tuned for individual frequencies. Circuitry: The main electronic components of a jammer are: Voltage-controlled oscillator Generates the radio signal that will interfere with the cell phone signal Tuning circuit Controls the frequency at which the jammer broadcasts its signal by sending a particular voltage to the oscillator Noise generator Produces random electronic output in a specified frequency range to jam the cell-phone network signal (part of the tuning circuit) RF amplification (gain stage) Boosts the power of the radio frequency output to high enough levels to jam a signal Power supply Smaller jamming devices are battery operated. Some look like cell phone and use cell-phone batteries. Stronger devices can be plugged into a standard outlet or wired into a vehicles electrical system. Cell phone Jammer Applications Cell phone jamming devices were originally developed for law enforcement and the military to interrupt communications by criminals and terrorists. The bombs that blew up commuter trains in Spain in March 2004, as well as blasts in Bali in October 2002 and Jakarta in August 2003, all relied on cell phones to trigger explosives. It has been widely reported that a cell-phone jammer thwarted an assassination attempt on Pakistani President Musharraf in December 2003. When President Bush visited London in November 2004, it was reported that British police considered using jammers to protect the presidents motorcade through London. During a hostage situation, police can control when and where a captor can make a phone call. Police can block phone calls during a drug raid so suspects cant communicate outside the area. Cell-phone jammers can be used in areas where radio transmissions are dangerous, (areas with a potentially explosive atmosphere), such as chemical storage facilities or grain elevators. Corporations use jammers to stop corporate espionage by blocking voice transmissions and photo transmissions from camera phones. There are rumors that hotel chains install jammers to block guests cell-phone usage and force them to use in-room phones at high rates. Cell Phone Jamming Legal Issues In the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and many other countries, blocking cell-phone services is against the law. In the United States, cell-phone jamming is covered under the Communications Act of 1934, which prohibits people from willfully or maliciously interfering with the radio communications of any station licensed or authorized to operate. In fact, the manufacture, importation, sale or offer for sale, including advertising, of devices designed to block or jam wireless transmissions is prohibited as well. Jamming is seen as property theft, because a private company has purchased the rights to the radio spectrum, and jamming the spectrum is akin to stealing the property the company has purchased. The Federal Communications Commission is charged with enforcing jamming laws. However, the agency has not yet prosecuted anyone for cell-phone jamming. In most countries, it is illegal for private citizens to jam cell-phone transmission, but some countries are allowing businesses and government organizations to install jammers in areas where cell-phone use is seen as a public nuisance. Armenia: legal [citation needed] Australia: illegal to operate, supply or possess Belgium: illegal to sell, possess and operate (licensed part of the spectrum). Canada: illegal, except by federal law-enforcement agencies who have obtained approval Peoples Republic of China: Used by the Education government department as a method of thwarting cheating in schools. During major end of year exams, mobile phone jammers are used in areas surrounding high schools to prevent students inside from receiving calls or text messages, which may be used for illicit purposes. In some municipalities however, rather than the use of jammers, mobile signal towers close to schools are temporarily shut down for the duration of the week as exams are in progress. Czech Republic: illegal. Denmark: illegal. Finland: illegal. France: France legalized cell-phone jammers in (movie) theaters and other places with performances in 2004.Abandoned due to complaints regarding emergency calls. Still legally used inside jails. Germany: illegal, but installation in jails has been proposed. India: Government, Religious Places, Prisons and Educational Institution use jammers. Iran: illegal to operate for civilians but allowed for police forces and military. It is however legal to own such units, which can be bought in electronic markets without a license. In most jails, libraries and university classrooms such jammers are already in use. In the 2009-2010 Iranian election protests, police forces used cell phone and Bluetooth jammers. Ireland: illegal to operate. Legally used inside prisons by the Irish Prison Service. Italy: technically not illegal to own, but illegal to operate, since the Italian law specifically prohibits disturbing radio and telephoning communications. GSM jammers are however legal to be used in places like hospitals, churches, movie theatres and other places with performances, and other buildings where and when the use of mobile telephones may result in a leak of sensitive information: on such occasions, jammers are legal as long as their operation doesnt interfere with electronic medical equipment and allows mobile phones to make emergency calls. Tri-Band Jammers are reserved to, and in use with, the police forces and are being experimented in prisons. Japan: Illegal to use, but legal to own. Buying of mobile short range versions is allowed. Use of fixed high output jammers with long range is illegal, with fines of up to max $250,000USD and/or 5 years in prison. Mexico: legal inside jails, often used also in churches and hospitals. New Zealand: legal inside jails. Norway: illegal to own and operate. The police and the military can use jammers in situations in which it is necessary. Pakistan: legal inside banks, often used also in libraries. Switzerland: illegal. Turkey: illegal. Only the police and the military use jammers. Ukraine: legal, planned to be used in schools United Kingdom: illegal to use, but legal to own. Installation in jails has been proposed United States: Cell phone blocking devices are used by federal officials under certain circumstances. Privacy rights of property owners may affect the policy and application of law within buildings. The FCC may issue a permit that waivers the law for private use. Alternatives to Cell Phone Jamming While the law clearly prohibits using a device to actively disrupt a cell-phone signal, there are no rules against passive cell-phone blocking. That means using things like wallpaper or building materials embedded with metal fragments to prevent cell-phone signals from reaching inside or outside the room. Some buildings have designs that block radio signals by accident due to thick concrete walls or a steel skeleton. Companies are working on devices that control a cell phone but do not jam the signal. One device sends incoming calls to voicemail and blocks outgoing calls. The argument is that the phone still works, so it is technically not being jammed. It is a legal gray area that has not been ruled on by the FCC as of April 2005. Cell-phone alerts are available that indicate the presence of a cell-phone signal. These have been used in hospitals where cell-phone signals could interfere with sensitive medical equipment. When a signal is detected, users are asked to turn off their phones. Cell-phone users dont know theyre being jammed. The phones just indicate that theres no service or no signal from the network. The jammer simply interrupts the phones ability to establish a link with the nearest cell-phone tower. If the battery on your phone is okay, and youd like to continue your conversation, try walking away from the area. You may be able to get out of the jammers range with just a few steps. Every technology has good aspect as well as bad aspect the important thing is, how we are using it. There are some bad aspects of mobile Jammers like: Jamming blocks all calls in the area, not just the annoying ones. Jamming a signal could block the call of a babysitter frantically trying to contact a parent or someone trying to call for an ambulance. Cell Phone Jammers are very useful to society from the antisocial elements. We can save our national leaders. We can restrict the communication network between the anti social elements. Cell phone Jammers prevent the students from carrying cell phones to the college.

My Values and God Essay example -- Religion, Gods Values

Values in life are something that are extremely important to have in my life. A value is something that a person considers to be important to themselves. Financial values vary from person to person. Not everybody wants the same lifestyle. Some people dream of having expensive cars, spacious homes and many possessions. Others search for the simple life, uncluttered by material goods. Our values influence the way we earn, spend, save, invest and spend money. Personal values are influenced by family and friends, by television and movies, and by what attracts us in the marketplace. For example, you may want to go to college, yet you want to earn money to buy a new car. If you cannot afford both, you must make a choice. A goal is a preferred future condition. It is more than a hope.Goals help you to get more of what you want out of life. They represent the ideal state to which you aspire, guiding all your actions towards this aspired state. What do you need to set goals? You need to know who you are (identity), your values, goals that you want to achieve, an action plan to achieve these goals, what motivates you, flexibility and self-discipline. Knowing who you are will keep you focused as you set priorities and accomplish challenges in your personal and professional lives. When you engage in self-reflection, it is helpful to avoid defining yourself in terms of external trappings, others' expectations or stereotypes. Establishing your values will help you to set goals in priority. Without values, all goals will be important, making it difficult for you to decide which should take precedence. Goals need to be specific. They should have a defined objective and deadline that allow you to asses... ..., then my life does not have meaning, and there is no explanation as to why I am alive. If He does not exist, then I have based my life on a false theory, however, there is no definitive proof that He is real or not. My interpretation of God is solely individualistic and therefore, I can not impose my beliefs on other people. I am not certain that there is concrete evidence that God really exists. However, I do know that He plays an important role in my life. I have my own view of who God is and what He has done for me. For some people, my opinion may not hold enough substantial evidence and whether this is true or not is not for me to decide. Instead, I have come to an understanding that at this stage in my life, someone else may not accept my beliefs. However, I can be happy with this and move on. I can only testify to the beliefs and faith that I hold in God.

Madonna Case Study

Question 1 Described and explain the strategy being followed by Madonna in term of the explanation of competitive strategy given in Chapter 6. Answer 1 Table 2: Bowman’s strategy clock Based on the Bowman’s strategy clock above, we identify strategies been used in her albums through the years below; Lucky Star 1982 Trashy pop – lace tops, skirts over capri pants, fishnet stockings, jewelry bearing the Christian cross, and bleached hair. Young wannabe girls, dovetailing from fading disco to emerging ‘club scene’influential among young girls and women 1. ‘No frills’ – combines a low price, low perceived product/service benefits and a focus on a price- sensitive market price Like a Virgin- Like a Prayer(first number one album on the U. S. lbums chart) 1984 Originally a Marilyn glamour image, then became a saint and sinner She performed the song at the first MTV Video Music Awards – trademark â€Å"Boy Toy† belt and cruc ifix jewelry More grown-up rebellious fan base, more critical female audience and male worshippers – featured role in â€Å"Desperately Seeking Susan† – embarked on her first concert tour in the U. S. in 1985 titled The Virgin Tour, with the Beastie Boys. 2. Low price – risk of price war and low margins; need to be cost leader Vogue Erotica Bedtime Stories (eighth U. S. umber-one single -Academy Award-winning song) 199019921994 Erotic porn star, sadomasochistic, sexual control, more minelli in Cabaret than Monroe signed an endorsement deal with soft drink manufacturer Pepsi debuted her new song, â€Å"Like a Prayer†, in a Pepsi commercial and also made a music video for it. Peculiar mix of target audiences: gay club scene, 1990s’ women taking control of their own lives, also pure male titillation -Madonna's first publication Sex, a book consisting of sexually provocative and explicit images – caused media controversy but sold 500,000 copies in the U.S. 3. Hybrid – seeks simultaneously to achieve differentiation and a price lower than that of competitors Something to Remember Evita (won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Original Song From a Motion Picture also won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy) 1995 Softer image, ballads preparing for glamour image of Evita film role Broadest audience target, picking up potential film audiences as well as regular fan base – designed to appeal to the mature audience that would be the target of Evita. Most conventional image.Max Factor later used this mixture of Marilyn and Eva Peron to market its glamour image 4. Differentiation – seek to provide products or services that offer benefits that are different from those of competitors and that are widely valued by buyers. Ray of Light – (U. S. top 5 singles – won three Grammy Awards – won a Grammy for â€Å"Best Short Form Music Video. â€Å") 1998 E arth mother, Eastern mysticism, dances music fusion – album influenced by electronica, techno, and trip-hop, thereby updating her classic dance-pop sound for the late '90s. â€Å"Most adventurous record. â€Å") Clubbing generation of the 1990s, new cohort of fans plus original fan base of now 30somethings desperately staying trendy – used by Microsoft in its advertising campaign to introduce Windows XP. 5. Focus differentiation – strategy seeks to provide high perceived product/service benefits justifying a substantial price, usually to a selected market segment (niche) Music 2000 Acid rock, tongue in cheek Miss USA/cow girl, cool Britannia – having a video which depicts murders by car, was banned by MTV and VH1.Managing to hit the changing club scene and 30-something Brits – starred in the film Swept Away a commercial and critical failure and released straight-to-video in the UK. 6. Increased price/standard value – higher margins if comp etitors do not follow; risk of losing market share American Life 2003 Militaristic image Che Guevara Anti-consumerism of American dream – Madonna kissed the heirs to her throne, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera — and then got the two of them to make out with each other.Unclear audience reliant on existing base – sold 4 million copies, the lowest selling album of her career. The release of Madonna's successful children's book, -The English Roses, which was followed by several more novels in future years. 7. Increase price/low price – only feasible in monopoly situation Confession on a Dance Floor 2005 Retro-1980’s disco imagery, high-motion dance-pop sound Strong gay-icon audience, pop-disco audience, dance-based audience – radio stations were boycotting Madonna's singles because she publicly spoke of disapproval against the war n Iraq. 8. Low value/standard price – loss of market share Hard Candy (Most successful release from the album, reaching #1 in twenty-seven countries worldwide including the United World Chart and becoming one of Madonna's biggest-selling singles. ) 2008 ‘M by Madonna' clothes collection, which was designed by Madonna for H&M consist of classic designs and accessories which reflect Madonna’s timeless, unique and always glamorous style. Madonna sliced away at genre straightjackets like a surgeon, opening the doors for the future hip-hop explosion. U. S. Canada, North & South America and European concert tour â€Å"Sticky and Sweet† in promoting her new album – Madonna's adding a new twist to a whole new distribution model the mobile handset Samsung and Sony Ericson. Focus differentiation – strategy seeks to provide high perceived product/service benefits justifying a substantial price, usually to a selected market segment (niche) Madonna’s new album Hard Candy 2008 has rebuild her strategy from ultimate failure to focused differentiation as her new album has an urban vibe, while remaining a dancepop record at heart.Stuart Price, the producer of Confessions on a Dance Floor, described the new album as moving in an urban direction. It had initially been defined as having â€Å"a lot of producers from a lot of genres in there. † The Sun proclaiming that â€Å"it could be her most ambitious project yet†, while The New York Times reviewed the album as â€Å"a set of catchy, easily digestible, mass-appeal songs†. (Wikipedia 2008) Question 2 Why has she experienced sustained success over the past two decades?Answer 2 For stay maintaining in entertainment industry Madonna has use a ways of attempting to sustain advantage through differentiation ; Create difficulties of imitation – Factors that can make strategies difficult to imitate. ? Music genre Madonna always changed her music genre in her new album and her music genre never been the same genre from one album with other album. For example in her ear ly career the music genre her bring is Trashy pop and for current album the genre was urban vibe. Targeted audiences Madonna always set her target audience with her new album release in market and her target audience is different for each album. For example in album Ray of Light her target audience was Clubbing generation of the 1990s and for album Confession on a Dance Floor the target was Strong gay-icon audience. ? Style or Image Madonna style and image always changed with her new album release in market and not many celebrities willing to do the same thing with Madonna because its take a higher cost.For example that we can give here about Madonna style or image is in her album name Music here image was Acid rock, tongue in cheek Miss USA/cow girl and in album Like a Virgin like a Prayer her image is originally a Marilyn glamour image. ? Trademark The trademark of Madonna was her dance, which is her dance for all albums is different from one and other and for all album Madonna ha s set her own dance. For example in album Ray of Light the dance step was a classic dance pop and for album hard candy the dance step is more to hip hop. Sex appeal As what we know Madonna like to show her sex appeal to public and it’s was her attraction to make her fans buy her album or watch her movie. Her sex appeal is hard to imitate by other celebrity because her has her own persona of sex appeal that other artist didn’t has and also Madonna really confident with her sex appearances in public. Create a situation of imperfect mobility – The capabilities that sustain differentiation cannot be traded. Her self Something that cannot being change or imitate by other celebrity is Madonna voice. Even her now already 25 years in entertainment industry but she still can maintain her vocal establish and didn’t has any singer have a similar voice like Madonna, ever her singing style also cannot be imitate by other singer and it never change until now. ? Tradema rk As we know Madonna trademark was her dance, and Madonna dance step is difference from other celebrity because it has an own style and persona while her dance.Madonna and dance is something that we cannot change because Madonna started her career in entertainment industry with dance and until now she still with her interesting in dance. ? Sex appeal Sex and Madonna is one of the thing that we cannot change because Madonna always come out with her sexuality story in media and it’s like something compulsory to Madonna in this entertainment industry. Most of Madonna fans also know her because of her sex appeal story and not because her talent in music.Establish a lower cost position – Competitors can allow an organization to sustain better margins that can be reinvested to achieve and maintain differentiation. ? Album All Madonna album was receive a good feed back from her fans and most of her albums are sold more than what she expected because a price of her album was an affordable and anybody can buy it. Not just that, the quality of her album also appropriate with the price given and make her fans feel satisfied. Tour / Concert In all Madonna tour most of the ticket is sold out and it’s proving to us that Madonna concert get an excellent reception from her fans. Her ticket price also affordable and the place divided also make all her fans can watch her performances in suitable situation. Not just that, Madonna basically has a surprise to her fans in her performance. Question 3 What might threaten the sustainability of her success? Answer 3 There have several factors that can be threatening the sustainability of Madonna successful in entertainment industry and the factor is: ?Her own self Her own self can be the biggest threat for her future career in show business because with her habit like to present the controversy in media will arrive the negative impact for her in long term. After 25 years in music industry she always makes the nega tive controversy and it will make the fans keep bored with the bad story about their idol. If that happen, Madonna career also will goes down and it’s hard for her to wake up again after that. ? Criticism Madonna gets too many criticisms along her career because of the controversy that her always make when her new album need to release in market.Maybe for her it’s just the trick to promote her new song and just a part of her marketing strategy, but for the other parties who give the critic to her will feel that Madonna is wrong icon for them because don’t know how to care her fans sensitivity. ? New artists with new talents Now days too many new talent or star came out in entertainment industry and it will give bad impact to Madonna because most of the new generation likes to watch and give their support to new artists compare than the oldies.Most of the new artist now has a new talent that we can’t see from the previous evergreen generation. So that Mado nna should work harder to make sure her reputation will not go down and can become a diva forever. ? Reality shows The reality show also can be the biggest threat for Madonna in music industry because of too many reality shows playing in television now and the contestant for the program also has a big talent and their idea also new and fresh. When the new talented star will come out from that reality shows, it will give pressure to Madonna to stay in entertainment industry for a long term. Sex appearances Madonna and sex appeal is synonym in entertainment industry because her always like to show her sex appearance to public more compare to promoted her album or films. Most of her story in magazine or from paparazzi is about her sex appeal is too much and have a one time her well known as a sex icon more than a singer or movie star and it’s can become a threats to her because her sex story more than her album or movie story. ? Competitor As we know all celebrity has their own competitor in entertainment industry and it’s goes same to Madonna.For her latest competitor in music industry was a Britney Spears. It is because Britney and Madonna do a come back in music industry almost in the same time and when the time that downfall of Madonna, Britney also face the same situation as Madonna. Not just that, Madonna and Britney also well known as a celebrity who like to do a controversy and always come out with their sex appearance in public. Conclusion Madonna rocketed to stardom so quickly in 1984 that it obscured most of her musical virtues.Appreciating her music became even more difficult as the decade wore on, as discussing her lifestyle became more common than discussing her music. However, one of Madonna's greatest achievements is how she manipulated the media and the public with her music, her videos, her publicity, and her sexuality. Arguably, Madonna was the first female pop star to have complete control of her music and image. Madonna named al so list as a one of People Magazine's '50 Most Beautiful People of 1991†², and '25 Most Intriguing People of 2001†².It is because Madonna has her own Image, music genre and targeted audiences for each albums that been produced in market. She also was the first global brand name to make content delivered to mobile phones seem downright dope. Not just for consumers in Asia and Europe, who'd long been exposed to any number of mobile content and marketing campaigns, but to mobile newbie’s who just happen to be the ultimate arbiters of pop culture cool: America's teenagers. Madonna has been dubbed â€Å"one of the greatest pop acts of all time† and dubbed â€Å"The Queen of Pop† by some media.She is ranked by the Recording Industry Association of America as the best-selling female rock artist of the twentieth century and the second top-selling female artist in the United States with 63 million certified albums. Guinness World Records list her as the world's most successful female recording artist of all time and the top-earning female singer in the world with an estimated net worth of over US$400 million, having sold over 200 million records worldwide. On March 10, 2008, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Critically Evaluate That The Law Will Continue To Do Little To Prevent Age Discrimination - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2365 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Type Critical essay Level High school Tags: Age Discrimination Essay Did you like this example? In view of a justification defence to both direct and indirect discrimination, the law will continue to do little to prevent age discrimination Critically evaluate this statement as a reflection of the current position of the law in this area. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Critically Evaluate That The Law Will Continue To Do Little To Prevent Age Discrimination" essay for you Create order Date authored: 7 th July, 2014 The current law on discrimination is laid down in the Equality Act 2010. Age is one of the protected characteristics within the Act. 1 The term Age refers not only to a persons age, but also to persons in a particular age group.2 The Equality Act stipulates that direct discrimination occurs where a person treats less favourably another due to the latters protected characteristic. 3 Thus, there must be a comparator to compare with. If one does not exist, the court would create an imaginary comparator. The comparator must be in the same or not in a materially different position from the plaintiff in all aspects with the exception of being a member of the protected class.4 The comparison exercise must be reasonable.5 The Tribunal applies an objective test for less favourable treatment. 6 Indirect discrimination can be claimed where there is an ostensibly neutral provision, criterion or practice which indirectly discriminates against the claimant.7 The indirect discriminatio n provisions are aimed to tackle disguised age barriers rather than barriers stemming from retirement. Thus, the fact that an individual cannot obtain a qualification needed for a promotion before retirement does not mean that he has been discriminated against. 8 In contrast to other forms of direct discrimination, direct age discrimination can be justified. Although the motive for discriminating is irrelevant, 9 the employer could raise a defence that the discriminatory acts were proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.10 Legitimate aims and proportionality are distinct issues which must be examined by separately by the Tribunal.11 Indirect discrimination is justified using the same principle. The Tribunal must strike an objective balance between the discriminatory effect of the provision and the reasonable needs of the business. There must be a need for the provision and it must be reasonably necessary. 12 The peculiarities of age as a protected characteristic should be pointed out. Age discrimination includes a wide range of objective justifications unlike sex discrimination where there are very few and race discrimination where there are virtually none. This is logical given the fact that age discrimination is related to many complex issues such as retirement, business needs or working culture. Such peculiarities superficially imply that in most occasions, the employers policies would be justifiable and age discrimination claims should be a response only to the most heinous conduct. Even though direct discrimination claims are becoming a rare phenomenon as most companies have developed solid equal opportunities policies and training, there have been several recent direct age discrimination cases where managers have made discriminatory remarks in view of the employees performance. 13 Furthermore, a 2012 DWP report pointed out that age-related assumptions and stereotypes are still prevalent in the UK.14 Thus, a careful balancing ac t between the employers legitimate aims and the severity of the discriminatory measure is prudent. The background of the current legislation should also be considered. The Equality Act 2010 is a consolidating legislation, replacing the provisions of the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 which implemented the Equal Treatment Directive. In that regard, the objective justification defence is a recognised concept in EU Law. InIncorporated Trustees of the National Council on Aging v Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (the Hayday case) 15 The European Court of Justice acknowledged that it is acceptable to derogate from the provisions of the Equal Treatment Directive16 relating to age discrimination in situations where there are legitimate public interest objectives. The means of implementing the objectives must be appropriate to the aim and reasonably necessary for its achievement. 17 The Court has recognised legitimate objectives such as inter-generational fairness and dignity. A policy, criterion or provision which is justified based on staff retention and workforce planning meets the inter-generational fairness objective. Avoiding the necessity to dismiss older workers on the basis of incapacity or underperformance has been directly related to the dignity objective. Avoiding the need for expensive and divisive disputes about capacity and underperformance would also meet said aim. However, it is recognised that direct and indirect age discrimination cannot be identically justified. 18 Age Discrimination and Retirement An example of a discriminatory but justifiable provision is a legislation permitting compulsory retirement on the ground of age. The European Court has held that said legislation was necessary for checking unemployment and encouraging recruitment. 19 A compulsory retirement clause for partners in a law firm has also been justified on the grounds that it allowed associates of the firm the op portunity of partnership after a reasonable period; facilitated the planning of the partnership by having a realistic long term expectations as to when vacancies would arise; and limited the need to expel partners by way of performance management, which contributed to the collegiate environment within the firm.20 In Harrod v Chief Constable of West Midlands Police the authority applied a compulsory retirement provision within the Police Pensions Regulations 1987 to force a large number of officers to retire. Generally, a discriminatory practice is not justifiable on the basis of cost but may be justified on the basis of efficiency. However, the distinction between the two can sometimes be blurred. Improving efficiency was accepted by the Tribunal as a legitimate aim. However, the measure was disproportionate. The discriminatory practice was applying the Regulation to all officers only because they were within its ambit. There were other less discriminatory alternatives such as voluntary retirements, part-time working and career breaks, which were not considered.21 In Bloxham v Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer22 the Tribunal held that Bloxham had been treated less favourably than partners aged 55 or over as, being only 54, he was subject to a 20 per cent reduction. However, modification of the pension scheme to make it more financially sustainable and fairer to younger partners was held to be a legitimate and necessary aim and the firm had successfully demonstrated that the amendments were a proportionate means of achieving this aim. Access to Employment Another example of a justifiable policy is restricting a job position to applicants over a certain age. 23 This constraint may be reasonable considering the requirements of the job in question. In the same spirit, the Equality Act recognises an exception to some of its provisions24 relating to promotion and access to employment if the employer can demonstrate that age is an occupational re quirement and that said requirement is a proportionate means of a achieving a legitimate aim.25 This is particularly relevant for professions within the film or sports sectors. Enhanced Redundancy Payments The Equality Act permits employers to consider age as a factor when deciding whether to make an enhanced redundancy payment. 26 Although such practices may be prima facie discriminatory, there have been many cases of recognised justifications. For example, a redundancy scheme whereby payments are raised depending on age and length of service was held to meet legitimate aims.27 Such aims were: encouraging loyalty, supporting older workers who are more vulnerable in the job market and providing an incentive to older workers to volunteer for redundancy, which would free senior posts for younger employees. In another example, the employer, DWP, justified an enhanced payment for older employees as part of a scheme by presenting evidence which demonstrated that older emplo yees were unemployed for a longer period of time and had more family and financial responsibilities. 28 The aim of the enhanced payment policy was to provide proportionate monetary support until the employee finds other employment or retires. The court recognised that even though the scheme could have been made non-discriminatory at no extra cost by reducing the payments, this did not render the scheme disproportionate. This implies that there is no requirement that it is absolutely necessary to take into account whether there are alternative, less discriminatory measures. It was also recognised that due to the nature of the scheme, the individual circumstances of the claimant could not be taken into account. The caveat is that such subtleties may serve as a carte blanche for employers to discriminate on the grounds of age. Dismissal due to Age Although in both direct and indirect discrimination the Tribunal employs the same test, following Seldon v Clarkson Wright and Ja kes 29 the employer must demonstrate a social policy aim not merely a private business aim to justify direct discrimination. Because of the more severe nature of direct discrimination, it is not illogical to argue that more scrutiny should be placed on the legitimacy of the employers objectives and the proportionality of its measures. In OReilly v BBC30 the plaintiff was successful in her claim for age discrimination. The company dismissed her in order to change the image of the Countryfile program to appeal to a younger audience. The tribunal acknowledged that this was a legitimate aim, but it held that the measure was disproportionate as it was not necessary to replace the plaintiff with younger presenters to achieve the aim. Similarly, in McCririck v Channel 4 Television Corporation 31 the claimant was dismissed in order to change the image of the program. An important distinguishing point in that case was that the defendants conducted a research exercise which identifie d negative views associated with the claimants image and character. No such research was carried out in OReilly. Moreover, Channel 4 considered the plaintiffs personal qualities, particularly his reputation as holding old-fashioned views, which were indirectly linked with his age. 32 The Tribunal concluded that the defendants have used proportionate means. An interesting point is that in McCririck, the decision to dismiss was justified by evidence and based to a larger extent on the plaintiffs style and to a lesser extent on his age. In contrast, in OReilly, the decision was based primarily on the stereotype that the plaintiff could not appeal to a younger audience because she was older. This serves as an example of a situation where the law should intervene to protect the employee from counterproductive stereotypes which may, in certain situations, by disguised under neutral, ubiquitous policies. In conclusion, the cases examined demonstrate the wide array of justificati ons within different contexts. Some of the justifications appear to be specific only to age discrimination. Objectives such as dignity may be unnecessarily vague particularly against the background of a company policy or scheme where the employees individuals circumstances are seldom a relevant consideration. Justifications such as avoiding the need for costly and divisive disputes can be controversial in light of the potential harm suffered by the plaintiff. Medical research by Florida State University College of Medicine demonstrated that older people who perceive age discrimination experience lower physical and emotional health than people who perceive sex or race discrimination.33 In that regard, cases such as OReilly and McCririck represent an illustrative example of the very thin line between a proportionate measure based on evidence and a measure based on stereotype. Word Count: 1774 BIBLIOGRAPHY Books Bell, A; Employment Law (2nd edn; Sweet Maxwell, London 2006) Honeyball, S; Honeyball Bowers Textbook on Employment Law (11th edn; Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010) Slewyn, N; Selwyns Law of Employment (16th edn; Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2011) Online Resources: The Lawyer, ‘Age Discrimination Time for Revision https://www.thelawyer.com/download.aspx?ac=68830 accessed 20 July 2014 Legal Week Law, ‘ More than just a number three key age discrimination lessons from recent cases https://www.legalweeklaw.com/download/-key-age-discrimination-lessons-recent-20289 Legal Week Law accessed 20 July 2014 Richard Lister, ‘Channel 4 dismissed John McCririck because of style, not age [2013] Lewis Silkin https://www.lewissilkin.com/Knowledge/2013/December/Channel-4-dismissed-John-McCririck-because-of-style-not-age.aspx#.U8w07vumXlQ accessed 20 July 2014 Table of Statutes EC Directive 2000/78/EC Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 Equality Act 2010, c.5, c.13, c. 13(2), c.19, c. 39(1) (a); c.39 (1) (c); c.39 (2) (b); c. 39(2) (c); Schedule 9, paragraph 1; Schedule 9, paragraph 13 Table of Cases Bloxham v Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer ET 2205086/2006 Clements v Lloyds Banking plc UKEAT/0474/13/JOJ Eweida v British Airways [2010] EWCA Civ 80 Homer v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2010] EWCA Civ 419 Incorporated Trustees of the National Council on Aging v Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (the Hayday case ) [2009] All ER (EC) 619 James v Eastleigh BC [1990] 2 AC 751 James v Gina Shoes Ltd UKEAT/0384/11/DM Lockwood v Department of Work and Pensions [2013] EWCA Civ 1195 MacCulloch v ICI plc [2008] ICR 1334 McCririck v Channel 4 Television Corporation ET 2200478/2013 OReilly v BBC ET 2200423/2010 Network Rail Infrastructures v Gammie (EAT (Scotland), 6 March 2009) Palacios de la Villa v Cortefiel el Servicios SA [2008] All ER (EC) 249 Seldon v Clarkson Wright Jakes [2012] UKSC 16 Shamoon v Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary [2003] UKHL 11 Smith v Safe ways Stores [1996] IRLR 456 Wolf v Staldt Frankfurt am Main [2010] IRLR 244 1 S. 5 Equality Act 2010 2 N Slewyn, Selwyns Law of Employment (16th edn; Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2011) p.141 3 S.13 Equality Act 2010 4 Shamoon v Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary [2003] UKHL 11 per Lord Scott of Foscote 5 See Eweida v British Airways [2010] EWCA Civ 80 6 Smith v Safeways Stores [1996] IRLR 456 7 S.19 Equality Act 2010 8 Homer v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2010] EWCA Civ 419 9 James v Eastleigh BC [1990] 2 AC 751 10 S.13(2) Equality Act 2010 11 MacCulloch v ICI plc [2008] ICR 1334, EAT 12 Network Rail Infrastructures v Gammie (EAT (Scotland), 6 March 2009) 13 Clements v Lloyds Banking plc UKEAT/0474/13/JOJ; James v Gina Shoes Ltd UKEAT/0384/11/DM 14 The Lawyer, ‘Age Discri mination Time For Revision https://www.thelawyer.com/download.aspx?ac=68830 accessed 20 July 2014 15 [2009] All ER (EC) 619 16 EC Directive 2000/78/EC 17 Seldon v Clarkson Wright Jakes [2012] UKSC 16 18 Seldon v Clarkson Wright Jakes 19 Palacios de la Villa v Cortefiel el Servicios SA [2008] All ER (EC) 249 20 Seldon v Clarkson Wright Jakes 21 Legal Week Law, ‘ More than just a number three key age discrimination lessons from recent cases https://www.legalweeklaw.com/download/-key-age-discrimination-lessons-recent-20289 Legal Week Law accessed 20 July 2014 22 ET 2205086/2006 23 Wolf v Staldt Frankfurt am Main [2010] IRLR 244, ECJ 24 s.39(1) (a); s.39 (1) (c); s.39 (2) (b) and s.39(2) (c) Equality Act 2010 25 Equality Act 2010, Sch 9, para 1 26 Equality Act 2010, Sch 9, para 13 27 MacCulloch v ICI plc [2008] I CR 1334 28 Lockwood v Department of Work and Pensions [2013] EWCA Civ 1195 29 [2012] IRLR 590 30 ET 2200423/2010 31 ET 2200478/2013 32 Richard Lister, ‘Channel 4 dismissed John McCririck because of style, not age [2013] Lewis Silkin https://www.lewissilkin.com/Knowledge/2013/December/Channel-4-dismissed-John-McCririck-because-of-style-not-age.aspx#.U8w07vumXlQ accessed 20 July 2014 33 The Lawyer, ‘Age Discrimination Time For Revision https://www.thelawyer.com/download.aspx?ac=68830 accessed 20 July 2014