Profile of English salaried GPs: labour mobility and practice performance

Recent national policy changes have provided greater flexibility in GPs' contracts. One such policy is salaried employment, which offers reduced hours and freedom from out-of-hours and administrative responsibilities, aimed at improving recruitment and retention in a labour market facing regional shortages.

To profile salaried GPs and assess their mobility within the labour market.

Serial cross-sectional study.

All GPs practising in England during the years 1996/1997, 2000/2001, and 2004/2005.

Descriptive analyses, logistic regression.

Salaried GPs tended to be either younger (<35 years) or older (> or =65 years), female, or overseas-qualified; they favoured part-time working and personal medical services contracts. Salaried GPs were more mobile than GP principals, and have become increasingly so, despite a trend towards reduced overall mobility in the GP workforce. Practices with salaried GPs scored more Quality and Outcomes Framework points and were located in slightly more affluent areas.

Salaried status appears to have reduced limitations in the labour market, leading to better workforce deployment from a GP's perspective. However, there is no evidence to suggest it has relieved inequalities in GP distribution.