29 September 2011

Dear WinVisible and co-signatories

Thank you for your letter to Dr Chamberlain and for bringing your concerns about ATOS to his and my attention. I am very grateful for the detail and links you provided which have helped me understand the issues better.

I am afraid that we are far too close to the Careers Fair to consider your request to exclude ATOS but I do intend pursuing your points about their general recruitment advertising in BMJ.
 
BMJ receives tens of thousands of recruitment notices each year. Time does not permit us to research the background of every advertiser or make an individual judgement about each  business and instead, we rely on a code of practice that offers general guidance about acceptance of advertisements. It is displayed on our website and I attach a link here.   http://group.bmj.com/group/advertising/policy/acceptance-of-adverts
You'll see that the policy is fairly liberal and presumes that recruiters who submit legal, honest and decent copy will be allowed to advertise. This is important to our readers who want as comprehensive a list of vacancies as possible and want to make their own decisions about the posts they find attractive. There is also a presumption that recruiters are clear about the nature of the work and will do nothing to jeopardise doctors' GMC standing. Your letter challenges that point and I will now ask ATOS for an assurance that their employees' duties are congruent with the GMC's Good Medical Practice. When I hear back from them, I and my colleagues on the BMJ board will consider what if anything needs to be done and we will let you know the outcome.

Once again, thank you for raising your concerns with us.  

Yours sincerely


Stella Dutton
Chief Executive Officer
BMJ Publishing Group Limited
BMA House
Tavistock Square
London  WC1H 9JR

Tel: +44 20 7383 6007
Fax: +44 20 7554 6107