Is a contractor an employee?
This question was considered in the recent case of Suhail v Barking Havering & Redbridge NHS Trust.
Mr Suhail (the claimant) worked as a GP for Rotherham Primary Care. Additionally, from time to time he provided services to Redbridge NHS Trust through a Cooperative (PELC). He was described as “self-employed” and paid gross (without deduction of tax and national insurance contributions). There was no obligation for PELC to offer any work to the claimant and neither was the claimant obliged to accept any work when offered. The court held that Mr Suhail was not an employee or a worker because there was no mutuality of obligation between him and PELC. The claimant was not offering his services exclusively to PELC and could work for any other third party.
Lawspeed can provide advice on employment status of a contractor and on IR35 tax legislation including IR35 reviews. Please contact us on 01273 236 236 for more information.
Adrian, a highly experienced lawyer, founded Lawspeed in 1997. He is responsible for developing our extensive portfolio of products and services, including the widely used Lawspeed contract templates. Adrian is an expert on “recruitment law” and specialises in contracts, regulatory compliance, employment status and dispute handling. He is chair of the trade body the Association of Recruitment Consultancies, the only lawyer lead recruitment trade body in the UK. Adrian and his co-director Ravi devised Standards in Recruitment as a vehicle for helping drive up standards and compliance in the industry.
Adrian is our lead in discussions with the government over regulatory evolution. Apart from assisting with client support, Adrian’s primary role is research and development into methods of business delivery, our latest service Proterms being his most recent project. Adrian heads our IR35 lawyers team.