A row has erupted about plans to use practices to screen patients for sexuality. NHS England is set to ask all clinicians to ask adult patients about their sexual orientation. The organisation says the move is intended to help it comply with equalities legislation but some senior GPs last night claimed that the requirement would…

A GP is facing a disciplinary tribunal accused of clearing time in his diary by booking appointments for fake patients. Dr Andrew Thomson, use “M Mouse” as one of his fake patients of the while working at the Academy Health Centre, Forfar, Angus, Scotland, the Medical Practitioner Tribunal Service heard. He is accused of having…

You may have heard about the recent job applicant to a restaurant chain who claims to have been rejected by text, complete with laughing emoji. Texts can be a great form of communication in some circumstances but certainly not for issues such as job rejection as it is both unprofessional and disrespectful to the applicant.…

Written by: David Elliot, Tax Director. BW Medical Accountants Ltd. HMRC’s IR35 legislation is nothing new.  Its purpose is to ensure that individuals working in engagements which are deemed by HMRC as “disguised employments” are obligated to pay employment taxes over to HMRC.  However, in HMRC’s view, the IR35 rules haven’t strictly been adhered to and…

Suspecting an employee might have a potential alcohol or substance problem creates a difficult situation and one where you need to balance the needs of individual employees against the legal obligations of an employer, so here are our recommendations: (1) Have a policy in place You need to be clear about how you will handle…

Some employees who have worked for their employer continuously for at least 26 weeks have a legal right (S63D Employment Rights Act 1996) to request time off (usually unpaid) to study, if it will help to improve their contribution to their employer’s business and provided there are at least 250 people working in their organisation.…

The Equality Act 2010 is legislation to stop all forms of discrimination and yet, despite this, there is still a gender pay gap in the UK – a large gap between the hourly pay received by men and women who do the same job. In fact section 78 of the Equality Act has meant that,…