GPs affected by unemployment or underemployment have been urged to attend a ‘virtual rally’ organised by the BMA to look into the issue.
BMA representatives will hear ‘first-hand experiences’ from sessional GPs who have struggled to find work, at an online event on 12 February.
It comes after a BMA survey last year found that more than 80% of GP locums have reported that they ‘cannot find work’.
The doctors’ union has been raising serious concerns about the issue, including the potential for thousands of GPs to be unemployed due to a ‘nearly non-existent’ job market in some areas.
At the rally, the BMA will also share the steps the union’s GPs committee has taken so far to address unemployment, as well as their ongoing negotiations and campaigns.
It said: ‘Have your say, ask questions and help shape the direction of our efforts. We’ll share the progress we’ve made while reigniting the momentum for change together. Stay informed, and show solidarity for a cause that affects us all.
‘Let’s raise our collective voice and ensure the challenges faced by sessional GPs stay at the forefront of the conversation. Together, we can make a difference.’
Pulse has reported on several examples of GPs struggling to find work or redundancies in recent months, with the BMA’s GP committee also noting that general practice has moved from a recruitment to an employment crisis.
Last year, Pulse revealed that GP locums are driving across England, staying in hotels overnight and driving up to four hours on a daily basis to get work amid a shortage of shifts available.
And a survey of RCGP members found that six out of 10 GPs looking for jobs ‘are struggling to find vacancies’.
The Government announced over the summer that GPs would be added to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) in a bid to hire 1,000 more doctors, as an ’emergency measure’ to tackle GP unemployment.
But according to the RCGP, only just over 300 newly-qualified GPs had taken up posts under the scheme as of last month.
