This would include on topics such as working conditions and seeking better terms and conditions such as pay, working hours and holiday entitlement.
At present, Boots management can discuss those things behind closed doors and inform you later, once it has made a unilateral decision. If we are successful, the company would be legally required to inform us at an early stage if it was considering changes which would affect those things. This would of course mean that we would inform and consult with you early on as well, enabling you to get involved in those discussions.
The PDA Union is an independent union and the largest pharmacists’ union in the UK. We have a team of experienced lawyers and pharmacists, who we call upon for advice. Our national executive and regional committee members have a vast amount of pharmacy experience and hold positions in other organisations too, such as the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and NHS England. A good number are current and ex Boots employees, including the Union General Secretary and Assistant General Secretaries. We’re extremely passionate about pharmacy and work very actively at a national level, regularly meeting with the GPhC, the Department of Health & Social Care and other influential organisations. We were established to represent employee and locum pharmacists and pre-regs, and we don’t have the conflict of representing the separate interests of pharmacy business owners.
The PDA Union has a wealth of experience dealing with legal cases and representing the interests of pharmacists. In 2012, we won a landmark employment tribunal claim on behalf of Boots pharmacists, after the company unlawfully reduced pharmacists’ Sunday and bank holiday premium payments. Our primary aim is to work with the company to make things better for you and to stop things escalating at an early stage. However, as an independent union, we’re also not afraid to challenge whenever things aren’t as they should be.
We’ve heard from many of our Boots members that they want working conditions and terms and conditions to improve. Some have told us that they’re happy with their conditions, but want to ensure they’re protected in challenging times. We need you to pledge your support and vote for us to help make that happen.