A “large multiple” in Scotland has been “celebrating” its locum rates reaching “their lowest for eight years”, the Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) has revealed.
According to an article by the PDA last week, which shared details of issues raised during its second round of regional committee meetings this year, “some pharmacists” working for the same business “have been asked to complete split shifts” - while some of its stores “were short of pharmacists and seeing temporary closures”.
The PDA told C+D that the multiple, which it declined to name, had highlighted the low locum rates as a “positive achievement” in recent management communications.
Read more: Exclusive: ‘No expectation’ of pay for Jhoots locums, says PDA
At the same time, it said, the multiple had been “finding it difficult to secure locums for shifts” and some of their premises “risk having to close as a result”.
“The PDA has consistently called on the NHS to act when a pharmacy business chooses to not open rather than pay a locum a fair rate, because it has a negative impact on patients, communities and the reputation of pharmacy,” it said.
Restrictions
In the committee meeting for Wales, West England and Channel Isles, PDA members said a conflict-of-interest policy at a “large multiple” is preventing them from “locuming elsewhere on their days off”.
The PDA told C+D that the unnamed multiple is telling its pharmacists “they must not locum for any other community pharmacy employer in the UK”.
Read more: Exclusive: Unpaid Jhoots locum fees surpass £1m
Yet it “happily engages locum pharmacists to cover shifts” at its own pharmacies, it said, and “seemingly trusts those locums not to breach confidence” when they see things like “business performance data, which is often displayed on staff noticeboards”.
“The employer accepts [those locums] can also work for others without conflict of interest being an issue, but somehow it is an issue the other way around,” it added.
Read more: Revealed: Average hourly locum rate drops 12% in England
“Some pharmacists say it feels like their own employer does not trust them and is deliberately preventing them from earning enough money, without explaining why.”
Unpaid breaks
Locums in the Wales, West England and Channel Isles meeting also raised concerns that new terms and conditions being enforced at a “medium-sized multiple” mean they are “required to take a half-hour unpaid lunch break but remain signed in” as the responsible pharmacist (RP) during this time.
The PDA said the reason for this “appears to be to carry on giving out pre-checked and bagged prescriptions”, and that members affected by these new terms and conditions should contact their PDA member support centre.
Read more: ‘Just one pharmacy business’ owes locums £200k unpaid fees
And the PDA told C+D that being signed in as the RP “is work” and pharmacists doing so “should be paid for that time”.
It added that a locum’s rate “should be calculated to cover all hours they are working” or signed in as the RP.
Patient violence
Meanwhile, the Northern England committee revealed that community pharmacy members were worried about “enforcement of targets leading to unnecessary services being delivered”.
And it said that in some pharmacies where services were advertised as “no appointment needed”, there were reports of an increase in violence from patients “frustrated by the need to wait”.
Read more: PDA adopts ‘historic’ objective in the ‘interests of pharmacists’
It comes as the PDA told C+D this week there is “no expectation” of locum pharmacists receiving the fees they are owed by failing pharmacy chain Jhoots.
It follows C+D reporting in November that the payments owed to locums by Jhoots pharmacies had surpassed £1 million.
