The CVS Pharmacy logo is shown on a sign above a CVS Health Corp. store in Las Vegas, Nevada, on February 7, 2024.
Patrick T. Fallon AFP | Getty Images
A CVS Las Vegas has become first position Joining the new national pharmacy union marks a milestone as organizers try to help thousands of U.S. pharmacy workers address what they call unsafe working conditions.
CVS Omnicare Las Vegas branch has nearly 30 pharmacy employees win union election Thursday, by a landslide of 87% to 13%. Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians there fill prescriptions for seniors and other vulnerable patients in Nevada’s long-term care facilities.
These workers join now Pharmacy Associationwhich will represent them in labor negotiations with CVS.
“We will fight hard to get the best contract in the industry for these people who trust our union to represent them. This is a historic win and a very decisive win,” said community pharmacist and partner Shane Jeromin Shane Jerominski said.
Jerominski and other organizers of recent nationwide pharmacy worker strikes partnered with IAM Healthcare, a union representing thousands of health care professionals, to launch The Pharmacy Guild in November. The late October shutdown, dubbed “Pharmageddon” by organizers, involved CVS, walgreens and etiquette and draw widespread media attention to issues of concern to workers.
As with the strike, the pharmacy association’s goal is to help pharmacy workers address what many employees say are unsafe staffing levels and increasing workloads across the industry that put both staff and patients at risk. The association is also calling for legislative and regulatory changes to establish higher standards of pharmacy practice to protect patients.
The unionization effort is the result of years of growing dissatisfaction among retail pharmacy employees, who often face understaffed teams and rising work expectations imposed by company management. The pandemic has only exacerbated these problems, as new responsibilities such as testing and vaccinations place the burden on pharmacists and technicians even more urgently.
A CVS spokesperson said in a statement that the company respects employees’ rights to join or not join a union, including the decision of Omnicare Las Vegas employees to choose union representation. The company added that it will “work closely” with employees to address their current and future concerns and is “committed to providing a positive and nurturing work environment”.
Omnicare, which CVS acquired in 2015 and has nearly 10,000 stores, is not a mass-market pharmacy, unlike most drugstore chains. According to the CVS website, Omnicare pharmacies are located in 49 states.
But Jerominski said Omnicare and other pharmacies face the same problems, from staffing levels to lower starting salaries for technicians.
“This is not an issue specific to Omnicare, the issues they are expressing are the same issues I hear across the country. It’s prevalent in all major chains,” Jerominski said. “You can only ask a company to support you for so long…that’s why the strike happened. They finally said ‘no, we’re going to get the help we asked for.'”
The pharmacy association will now work to secure a union contract with CVS to address the concerns of Omnicare employees in Las Vegas. Jerominski said these employees want consistent work schedules that ensure pharmacy technicians work 40 hours a week year-round
“You can’t retain employees who have skills and families if you don’t guarantee them 40 hours, especially given the stress of the job,” Jerominski told CNBC.
The Pharmacy Guild sees momentum building in other parts of the country. Jerominski said pharmacy staff at two retail stores in Rhode Island have officially confirmed that they have applied to join the guild.
CVS is headquartered in the state.
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