Below are details of some of the key points that were debated at the fourth Regional Committee meetings of 2022.
In community pharmacy across all regions and nations, members highlighted increased workload, particularly in relation to the flu service, which leads to heightened pressure and stress. Additionally in Scotland, Wales and the West of England, members reported ongoing frequent store closures from multiples.
In Boots, agreement has been reached between Boots and the PDA in settlement of the 2022 pay deal for pharmacists, which means that all eligible pharmacists within the bargaining unit will receive a 4.5% pay increase effective from 1 November. In LloydsPharmacy, the next pay negotiations will begin in early 2023.
Northern Ireland
Regional Committee member Andrew Cheung and National Officer for NI Una O’Farrell attended the Pharmacy Forum NI Rewarding Excellence event in Belfast. During the event, they presented a donation from the PDA to The Pharmacist Advice and Support Service, known as PASS, which helps pharmacists, ex-pharmacists, their dependants, and Foundation Year students in times of need.
PDA members across NI have been surveyed around PSNI fees and the Regional Committee are discussing next steps in their campaign. The PDA Reps Network in Northern Ireland, who work for GP Federations, have been supporting members with concerns around payroll issues.
Scotland
PDA members from within Scotland attended various Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) events including the STUC Youth Conference and STUC Black Workers Conference.
The Regional Committee in Scotland considered the challenges of remote working in Primary Care. Members also raised issues for Locums around reduced rates and difficulties accessing electronic systems.
North
Regional Committee members in the North noted that in the hospital sector, there is a continued high number of vacancies, with a noticeable number of jobs being readvertised.
In community, members discussed increased workload from Community Pharmacist Consultation Service (CPCS) referrals as well as the flu service.
Locums put forward concerns around staffing levels in some stores and highlighted that there was a lack of training available from employers for locums to be able use the different pharmacy systems effectively.
South East
Members in the South East highlighted difficulties around recruitment and retention of pharmacists in the hospital sector.
In GP Practice, members discussed that there were no salary uplifts after finishing the Independent Prescriber study and the CPPE pathway.
Wales and West
In Wales and the West of England, members commented on queries around pay and expenses in Integrated Care Boards (ICBs).
Locum members expressed a desire to promote the PDA’s Safer Pharmacies Charter more.
The PDA visited Senedd Cymru (the Welsh Parliament) to promote the Medicines to Ukraine initiative.
Matters raised by individuals and groups of members which are discussed at Regional level are reported to the National Executive Committee (NEC), where PDA Union policy is set.
Members needing support with issues at their workplace should contact the PDA Service Centre, while wider concerns about developments or trends in pharmacy can be shared with the local Regional Committee.
The Regional Committees are part of the PDA’s democratic structure and are formed to represent members’ views.
Related links
- Regional Committees
- Organisational Structure
- Flu-vaccination-service-FAQs-November-2021.pdf
- PDA launches online reporting tool to gather data on pharmacy closures
- PDA Union and Boots reach agreement on 2022/23 pay settlement
- PDA – Locum Advice
- PDA is represented at the STUC Youth Conference
- PDA Delegates join the 26th Scottish Trade Unions Congress Black Workers Conference
- Who We Are – Pharmacy Forum NI
- PDA Reps Network in Northern Ireland
- Safer Pharmacies Charter
- Medicines to Ukraine – A personal reflection on the recent visit to Ukraine by PDA Chairman Mark Koziol
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