The Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) and Boots have agreed a 4% pay rise for eligible pharmacists working at the UK chain under 2025 pay talks, the trade union yesterday (September 30) revealed.
All eligible pharmacists will receive the pay award effective from November 1, it said.
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In addition to the 4% uplift in pay, the PDA announced that all qualified pharmacists who have worked at Boots for over 10 years will now be paid at least £55,650 per year on a full-time equivalent (FTE) basis from next month.
Pharmacist store managers will also see a boost in pay, with the minimum annual salary set to increase to £57,200 FTE for small stores, £60,000 for medium stores and £65,000 for large stores, it added.
Those who remain below any new minimum pay thresholds following the 4% pay rise will see a further increase to their wages to reach the threshold, also effective next month, according to the union.
DPPs and IPs
The PDA said that eligible designated prescribing practitioners (DPPs) supporting pharmacists to become independent prescribers (IPs) will receive “an honorarium of £300 non-consolidated payment” for each IP supervised, to be paid once sign-off is completed.
This is separate to the current honorarium paid for supervision of Boots trainee pharmacists, according to the union.
It added that a “unified pay scale will be introduced to encompass both pharmacists and IP pharmacists”, with practicing IPs to be paid a minimum of £46,240 FTE per year under the framework.
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The other agreed changes to pay and benefits are:
- A minimum salary of £43,520 FTE per annum for one-year qualified pharmacists
- Increasing the “short notice payments” provision and eligibility from £100 to £120 based on current principles, with an agreement to “implement a six-month trial in region one to test and review an alternative set of principles” following pharmacist feedback
- The creation of a set of principles around “reasonable travel” to support relief pharmacists and improve “consistency across the business”
Who is eligible?
The PDA said that pharmacists and pharmacist store managers are eligible for the pay awards if “they are qualified members of the bargaining unit who are employed on November 1 2025 and who are not in their notice period”.
But it set out that they will be ineligible if they:
- Have joined or had a pay increase on or since August 1 2025
- Were rated as “not performing” at end-of-year 2025
- Are a trainee pharmacist
For the new minimum salaries, FTE is based on 40 hours per week, the PDA added.
Read more: PDA reveals 14% Boots trainee pharmacist pay uplift
The PDA said the settlement follows “productive discussions” and “highlights the critical role that pharmacists at Boots play in providing accessible healthcare to the community”.
“Their contributions are deeply appreciated by both Boots and the PDA Union who have a joint commitment to collaborating to ensure a rewarding future for all pharmacists at Boots,” it added.
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It follows the pay claim settlement reached by Boots and the PDA last year, when a 4% pay rise was agreed for eligible pharmacists working at the multiple and long-serving qualified pharmacists’ salaries were increased to £53,000 FTE per year.
According to the PDA, last year’s total pay award amounted to a 5% rise in Boots’ “investment in payroll” across the union’s bargaining unit.
And in February, the pharmacy union revealed that it had agreed an increase of up to 14% in the pay rate for trainee pharmacists with Boots.
