Last month, C+D reported that Tesco would begin paying locums working in its pharmacies one of four new set rates – capped at £36 per hour for emergency cover – from next week (July 18).

Responding to the news, Rowlands reached out to C+D to stress that it has “no plans” to set fixed locum rates for locum pharmacists covering shifts at its branches.

“We work closely with our locum colleagues and negotiate rates individually with them, which will continue,” a spokesperson for the multiple told C+D.

Meanwhile, Rowlands managing director Nigel Swift, told C+D last week (July 6) that locum pharmacists “deserve to be paid reasonable rates for the professional skills they offer”, as they are “an important part of the pharmacy network”.

 

Read more: Rowlands chief: We've had to really change how we recruit and retain pharmacy teams

 

“Wider workforce challenges” causing locum rate spike

 

However, Mr Swift noted that “in recent months, due to a nationwide shortage of pharmacists, locum rates have risen to unsustainable levels”.

These new rates “were never part of the NHS pharmacy funding cap agreed years ago”, he stated. “Therefore, we need to balance fair pay with the economic viability of keeping pharmacies open.”

Read more: Locum demand and rates ‘issue’ not isolated to pharmacy, says Maria Caulfield

 

The Rowlands spokesperson expanded on this point, noting that “wider workforce challenges” were the main cause of this “recent spike in locum rates”.

Some pharmacies have become “significantly less viable” under the pressure of paying these high locum rates and staff salaries, “alongside the substantial inflationary pressure we are all seeing”, the spokesperson said.

Such cases emphasise “the difficulty of working within a fixed funding envelope in England”, they stated.

This is “a well-known issue”, which pharmacy’s negotiating bodies “regularly” bring to the attention of “ministers, government officials and the NHS”.

 

Lloydspharmacy “constantly reviews locum rates”

 

Following Rowlands’ comments, C+D contacted Lloydspharmacy, Well Pharmacy, and Boots to understand what their plans regarding locum rates are, following Tesco’s decision.

Boots could not share a comment on this occasion, while Well Pharmacy did not respond to C+D in time for publication.

Meanwhile, a Lloydspharmacy spokesperson told C+D that the multiple “constantly [reviews its] locum rates to ensure [they] are competitive in this space”.

“Recruiting pharmacists and pharmacy teams has become increasingly difficult and it’s widely acknowledged that there are not enough pharmacists to meet demand,” they added, citing the Home Office’s placement of the pharmacist profession on its shortage occupation list.

Read more: Boots backs pharmacists’ presence on shortage occupation list

 

Providers and the NHS must step in to help pharmacy contractors address the “sector-wide workforce issues”, the spokesperson said.

Some locum pharmacists and the Pharmacists’ Defence Association have questioned whether pharmacists should be on the shortage occupation list.

 

Catch up with C+D’s Big Debate, which asked: Is there a shortage of community pharmacists?