In the first ten months of 2023, the PDA has supported locum members to secure £104,182.47 in fees owed to them by pharmacy contractors.
These cases can involve any pharmacy from the largest multiples to single pharmacy operators, and the PDA has developed a clear process in the steps required to secure members the money that they are due for their work. The highest value case so far this year has been for over £8,000, the highest ever amount recovered for a PDA member was over £18,000 in 2020.
Once all information is received from the member, the PDA team advises and supports locums on how to obtain the fees they are owed.
Paul Day, PDA Director, said, “Recovering unpaid fees is a longstanding area of support to pharmacists from the PDA, however even after accounting for inflation and higher locum rates the level of debt owed by contractors to pharmacists this year is shocking. Getting paid for the work you’ve undertaken is a basic right for any worker and these are the legitimate earnings due to these pharmacists.
Just as the PDA stands up for employed pharmacists if they are unlawfully underpaid, we also represent locum members who find themselves in a situation where they have worked but the pharmacy owner doesn’t pay them.
Pharmacy owners and the managers they employ need to ensure they pay all pharmacists, whether employees or locums, the full amount agreed for their work.”
If you are a PDA member who is a locum pharmacist and is having difficulty obtaining monies owed to you for locum work, please contact the PDA Member Support Center. Pharmacists who are not yet members of the PDA are also encouraged to join today and get advice and support.
Not yet a PDA member?
If you have not yet joined the PDA, we encourage you to join today and ask your colleagues to do the same.
Membership is FREE to pharmacy students, trainee pharmacists and for the first three months of being newly qualified.
Read about our key member benefits here.