(Reuters) – CVS Health Corp and Walgreens Boots Alliance have announced that the work action staged by some pharmacists in the United States this week had minimal impact on operations, with the majority of stores remaining open.
In an interview, CVS Chief Executive Karen Lynch stated that although a few employees called in sick at some stores this week, there were no store closures or disruptions to shifts as a result of the action. CVS Health employs approximately 30,000 pharmacists across its stores and operates over 9,000 retail locations.
A spokesperson from Walgreens informed Reuters that the “Pharmageddon” walkout, primarily organized on social media platforms such as Meta’s Facebook, had little impact and only resulted in temporary closures of three pharmacies over the past three days.
The spokesperson further revealed that no pharmacies in the United States were closed on Wednesday, which was intended to be the final day of the walkout. Walgreens currently operates 8,701 retail pharmacy stores in the United States, as of Aug. 31, 2023.
According to Shane Jerominski, a former Walgreens pharmacist and one of the organizers of the walkout, as many as 5,000 pharmacy workers were expected to participate in the three-day action. The primary objective of the walkout was to urge companies to enhance working conditions and add more staff to their stores.
CVS’s Lynch mentioned that the company has invested around $1 billion in improving wages for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.
Jerominski also acknowledged that due to the absence of a union, the exact number of affected stores and participating staff remained unclear.
He emphasized that the organizers were also advocating for better pay and more consistent hours for technicians, who are responsible for locating, dispensing, packing, and labeling prescribed medication under the supervision of pharmacists.
(Reporting by Leroy Leo and Pratik Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Caroline Humer and Anil D’Silva)
