Working as a Locum affords you greater flexibility in your home and work life. This can give you time to study for exams or to combine medicine with other employment or hobbies. For a junior doctor, locum work can allow you to earn money while you explore career options and locations, or it can provide you with temporary employment while you wait for a permanent job to be advertised in your specialty of choice. There is a wealth of clinical experience to be gained from locuming, because working in different hospitals exposes you to a variety of working systems and procedures.

To work as a locum through an agency, there are a number of issues that you should be aware of. The following is aimed at providing an insight into these issues.

Registration and Compliance.  Registering and compliance is both a regulatory and legal obligation and may at first appear to be an arduous and complex process. However, we will hold your hand through the process and only ask for information that is appropriate for each stage of the journey toward finally starting your locum role. Once registered and compliant with us, the future requirements become incremental and less onerous.

EAA Regulations. These regulations exist to protect the rights and welfare of all the stakeholders involved in Locum work. Click here to learn more about the EAA Regulations>>

Agency Workers Regulations (AWR). The regulations stem from the EU Temporary Workers Directive 2008. This gives temporary workers the right to the same pay and working conditions enjoyed by your own comparable workers/employees. The regulations do not alter the agency temps’ employment status, i.e. rights granted under these regulations do not grant them employment status in law. Click here to learn more about the AWR Regulations>>

Paying yourself as a Locum. Due to recent government regulation, the choices in terms of how you can take income from locum assignments is limited. Working as self-employed or through a Ltd Company is no longer possible except in a minority of exceptional circumstances. You will be informed about the choices available to you depending on the type of assignment and your professioanl status. Click here to learn more about the various payment options