Pharmacy staff from various chains, including Walgreens, may stage a nationwide walkout and hold rallies in the upcoming weeks.

• CNBC has learned that pharmacy staff from Walgreens are preparing for a nationwide walkout and rallies in October to protest poor working conditions, and are discussing joining forces with employees from other retail pharmacies.
• Some CVS employees are considering joining potential plans that reflect years of growing discontent among retail pharmacy staff.
• Several retail pharmacy chains are experiencing nationwide walkouts as a response to the current working conditions for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and other support staff.

CNBC has learned that pharmacy staff from various locations are preparing for a nationwide walkout and rallies in October to protest poor working conditions, and are discussing the possibility of joining forces with employees from other retail pharmacies.

Pharmacy staff are growing increasingly discontent with their understaffed teams and increasing work expectations, which have been further strained by the Covid pandemic's new duties like testing and vaccination.

In recent weeks, pharmacy staff from Walgreens locations across the country and stores in the Kansas City area held separate walkouts, adding to the growing labor movement in the U.S.

An anonymous Walgreens employee and independent pharmacist Shane Jerominski, who has been actively involved in organizing recent walkouts, confirmed that the walkouts are scheduled for Oct. 30 to Nov. 1.

The organizer of the Walgreens walkout stated that they have been in discussions with pharmacy staff from other retail chains about joining the group protest.

A spokesperson for Walgreens directed CNBC to the company's earlier statement regarding the pharmacy staff walkouts that occurred this week.

The company's pharmacy teams were highlighted by the spokesperson in the statement, who emphasized their dedication to serving communities at over 9,000 stores nationwide. The spokesperson also acknowledged the immense challenge faced by the team members in the last few years.

The spokesperson stated that Walgreens is attentive to the concerns of pharmacy staff and has been investing in wages and hiring bonuses to retain pharmacists in challenging locations.

According to Indeed, the average hourly wage for Walgreens pharmacists is $57.45. The company has over 86,000 health-care service providers, including pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and other health-related professionals.

The U.S. retail pharmacy segment of the company generates the most sales, with $110 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2023. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians work under this segment.

The CVS employee who organized the Kansas City area walkouts has been in touch with the Walgreens organizer about involving CVS pharmacy staff in the nationwide effort. This employee, who wishes to remain anonymous due to potential retaliation, represents CVS pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in the Kansas City area.

The CVS employee stated that the decision on whether those employees will join depends on the results of a meeting with Prem Shah, the company's chief pharmacy officer and president of pharmacy and consumer wellness, on Friday.

The employee will evaluate CVS's progress in implementing changes it promised – such as hiring more staff and offering overtime pay – following the conclusion of the Kansas City area walkouts.

The Walgreens organizer will be informed by the CVS employee that the pharmacy staff will fully support the nationwide walkout effort if the meeting does not go well.

A CVS spokesperson stated that the company is not observing any unusual occurrences related to unplanned pharmacy closures or pharmacist walkouts. The spokesperson further mentioned that CVS is collaborating with pharmacists to directly tackle any worries they may have.

Pharmacy staff participating in the nationwide effort would also hold demonstrations outside the stores that workers walk out of, according to sources.

Jerominski stated that organizers plan to hold rallies in areas with the highest level of participation in the Walgreens and CVS walkouts, but no specific store locations have been finalized. He emphasized that rallies were the most significant missing element from the recent walkouts.

Jerominski and the Walgreens organizer are considering unionization for pharmacy staff not currently represented by a union. The majority of pharmacists and technicians from Walgreens and CVS do not have union representation, while a small number of pharmacy staff from grocery retailers such as Kroger do have union representation, according to Jerominski.

Jerominski stated that organizers are in discussions with several existing unions, including IAM Healthcare and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, but no definitive agreement has been reached yet.

CNBC was not immediately responded to by IAM Healthcare regarding a request for comment. UFCW directed CNBC to a statement released Thursday in support of the recent walkouts staged by Walgreens and CVS pharmacy staff.

Main concerns of pharmacy staff

Pharmacy staff are worried that companies like Walgreens and CVS are imposing excessive demands on their employees, without providing adequate staffing or resources for them to perform their duties safely and effectively, which ultimately endangers patients.

The CVS employee informed CNBC that the current working conditions in their stores are not safe for customers. They urged for improvements in working conditions to enhance customer safety and confidence.

Pharmacy employees are responsible for more than just filling and verifying prescriptions. They also handle patient phone calls, administer vaccines, work with insurance companies on copays and reimbursements, perform rapid Covid and flu testing, and deal with frustrated customers due to understaffing.

A pharmacy technician in Minnesota, who wished to remain anonymous due to the risk of retaliation, compared their work shifts to running a marathon. According to CNBC, they stated that pharmacy staff are constantly overworked and exhausted after a long day of managing numerous tasks.

The Walgreens organizer stated that pharmacy employees are requesting greater transparency in the allocation of staff hours to stores, as well as dedicated training time for new hires and a matching of job tasks with the staffing levels of each store location.

Instead of basing task expectations on the number of team members each pharmacy should have, the organizer said that the company should consider how much staff the locations actually have.

Last year, Walgreens removed task-based metrics for its staff.

Pharmacy staff across various chains are hoping for quicker resolution to their concerns, as stated by Jerominski.

Jerominski stated that pharmacists often feel isolated and unsupported, with a sense of yelling into the void when trying to seek help from supervisors or district managers who may not respond until a week later.

According to a survey conducted by the American Pharmacists Association and the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations, pharmacy workers who bring complaints to management often receive little response. The survey found that there are no open mechanisms for pharmacists and other pharmacy staff to discuss workplace issues with supervisors and management.

Vaccine appointments, tensions with customers

Pharmacy staff at some Walgreens locations have stated that the current rollout of new vaccines, including those for Covid, flu, and respiratory syncytial virus, has resulted in an increase in their workload compared to usual.

One pharmacist, who wished to remain anonymous due to the risk of retaliation, stated that managing the current surge of vaccine appointments is challenging, particularly since all the respiratory virus shots arrived in the U.S. simultaneously. The pharmacist explained that they had appointments every 10 minutes, with some patients receiving multiple shots at once.

The pharmacist described a recent work shift where they were the only immunizer on staff, which made it nearly impossible for them to fill prescriptions and complete other tasks.

Since the profit margins on vaccines are higher than the average prescription, Walgreens and CVS have made immunizations a top priority, according to Jerominski, the organizer and pharmacy labor advocate.

A pharmacist from Colorado, who wished to remain anonymous due to the risk of retaliation, pointed out that staff members are increasingly dealing with frustrated customers.

Some pharmacists have stated that inadequate staffing and resources at certain locations can result in medication delays, errors, and longer wait times for appointments, which can lead to negative interactions with patients.

Patients are rightfully upset when they can't pick up critical medications in a quick and seamless way, but it can be emotionally taxing for employees when patients target all of their anger and frustration on staff, said the Colorado pharmacist.

In rare cases, patients may become aggressive or violent, and it is a lengthy process to ban them from a store to safeguard employees, according to a Colorado pharmacist.