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Do you start thinking about your future employment options at this stage? Do you stay at the same practice, or move to another practice but within the same company? Do you join the family business? Do you start your own business, or do you venture out and become a locum (self-employed) optometrist?
Some employers offer pre-reg posts on the basis that, following qualification, the employee is required to stay with the company for a minimum period as specified or agreed in their contract. Other employers may not impose any mandatory employment confines but may attract the employee to remain within the company by other means.
Whether you are a newly qualified or veteran optometrist the employment opportunities available to you are varied. The obvious decision to be made is whether to become an employed or self-employed optometrist, or even a combination of the two.
Employed/salaried employee
The precise definition of a salaried employee may differ slightly from one area of legislation to another. In general, it refers to an individual who has entered into a contract of employment and undertakes to perform any work or services but is not in business on their own account. An employee is entitled to core rights, which include entitlement to at least the national minimum wage and working time rights, including paid annual leave. Additionally, employees are entitled to all minimum statutory rights, including unfair dismissal, redundancy rights and so on - some of which are subject to a qualifying period of employment.
A contract of employment, which does not have to be in writing, forms a legal relationship between the employer and employee and is often based on common law principles. The employer and employee agree the terms and conditions of employment. This is often shown by the employee's starting work on the terms offered by the employer. Both are bound by the agreed terms.
Employees should obtain a statement of the main particulars of their employment - for example, details of pay, hours of work, holidays, notice period and disciplinary and grievance procedures. However, this does not in itself form a contract, but provides information on the contract's main terms. The employer and employee may negotiate better terms between themselves in a contract of employment. When the terms of a contract of employment are not adhered to, either party may have grounds to make a complaint of breach of contract. The employer is obliged by law to deduct income tax and national insurance contributions (NIC) from the employee's salary.
Self-employment
As a self-employed person you are your own boss. You can decide, for example, how much to charge for your work and how much holiday to give yourself. You are responsible for paying your own tax and NIC. Additionally, being self-employed affects the benefits you can claim, such as unemployment benefit, maternity leave, redundancy payment and notice rights. More importantly, a self-employed person is directly liable to the public for the work undertaken for the employer.
As a self-employed person you have some legal protection against the right not to be discriminated against on a number of grounds including sex, sexual orientation, marital status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, beliefs, disability and age. You are also entitled to a safe and healthy working environment on the employer's premises.
Legal implications
It is safe to say that legally an employed person has greater benefits than someone who is self-employed. As an employed person, if you work under a contract of service it is the responsibility of the employer to operate a PAYE service, usually on a monthly basis, and account for tax and NICs. Should a grievance arise, if it is not resolved by the employer in the first instance, an employee can take further action through an employment tribunal.
As a self-employed person, if you work under a contract for services it is your responsibility to ensure you register as self-employed. In order to pay tax and NIC you will need to complete a self-assessment form. You will be required to invoice the employer and ensure you receive payment for work you have undertaken.
What happens when an employer fails to pay for work undertaken? Where the dispute cannot be resolved with the employer, further advice may be sought from a solicitor and action taken in a small claims court. In severe cases, if after a period of 21 days the company fails to pay the amount owed, you may issue a petition for the company to be wound up. Once a winding up order is made the company is officially sent into liquidation.
In the case of an employer claiming bankruptcy, the liquidator will distribute funds in the proper statutory order - debts secured by a fixed charge, expenses of winding up, preferential creditors (income tax and VAT and wages of employees for example), debts secured by a floating charge, ordinary unsecured debts and members. The contracted/salaried employee is considered to be a secured or preferential creditor and is more likely to receive some remuneration. The self-employed person, however, for whom a debt is considered to be unsecured, comes near the bottom of the hierarchy.
The contract for the supply of services between the self-employed person and the employer is based on mutual trust. In agreeing a contract for services for a pre-determined fee, the self-employed person should offer a professional service, act in a professional manner and adhere to the employer's working requirements while in the contract. The employer is also then responsible for upholding the agreement by providing adequate support for the self-employed person in order for them to provide the best service possible, ensure no discrimination takes place, that appropriate health and safety rules apply and payment for services is upheld. A suitable system should also be in place to allow the employer and contractor to discuss any grievances should they arise.
Making the decision
For many professionals, when considering employment, factors such as salary, job security, benefits and perks are often paramount. The decision of whether to become an employed or self-employed optometrist may be influenced by the type of optometric position you undertake. For example, you may be a sessional hospital optometrist offering a contract of service for two days a week and a self-employed optometrist offering a contract for service for the remainder of the week.
An employed worker will acquire greater benefits such as holiday pay, sick pay, maternity/paternity leave and redundancy pay through a contract of service, but they may face disadvantages such as inflexible hours of work, reduced remuneration and additional responsibilities that don't necessarily fall within their job remit.
The self-employed worker will not have the benefits or legal backing recognised in employment law and job security will be limited as well as variable. However, they will gain greater flexibility in working schedule and often increased remuneration to compensate in part for the absence of such benefits.
It is evident that employment law is well defined and robust for the employed/salaried person, but for the self-employed person the law only protects against discrimination and health and safety in the workplace.
When faced with a dispute in cases of liquidation and bankruptcy, the unsecured contractor/creditor is in a weaker position to that of the secured creditor. Some professions have the facility to allow self-employed contractors to take out additional indemnity cover to protect themselves, but this type of indemnity does not currently exist for optometrists.
Before venturing out as a self-employed or employed optometrist, consider what role will suit your lifestyle, what advantages and disadvantages each will bear and more significantly assess how important the legal backing is to you.
? Tina Romanay is director of the Fight for Sight Optometry Clinic at City University and occasional locum optometrist