Pharmacists and pre-registration trainees are calling upon Boots to support an application by the PDA Union to request that ballot papers are posted out at the start of the ballot period, to help ensure as many pharmacists as possible can participate in the vote.
Although the formal ballot period starts on 4th February, the current position is that ballot papers will not be posted out to pharmacists until 10 working days into that period.
Mark Pitt, Assistant General Secretary of PDA Union explained: “By posting ballot papers out on day 10, this significantly reduces the time frame by which individuals can return their completed ballot papers, from up to 25 working days down to 15 days, or even less. Pharmacists are keen to participate in this democratic process and a longer window of opportunity will help as many pharmacists as possible to express their preference”
One Boots pharmacist who recently contacted the PDA Union explained why the current timetable would deny her a say in the ballot:
“l will be away from late February to early March and l note that the ballot paper, although the voting period begins on February 4th, may not reach me before l go away? Why is it going to take 10 days from after the voting period opens until we receive the ballot paper? Surely this is unfair.”
The data processes at Boots are already tried and tested ready for use and because the PDAU requested the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC) to appoint a Suitable Independent Person (SIP) to allow the union to communicate with all the bargaining unit at an early stage, the CAC already have the address data to pass onto the Qualified Independent Person (QIP) as soon as the ballot period starts. We see no reason why the QIP cannot start posting out ballot papers on day 1 of the ballot period as well.
Ballot papers can only be sent out by the Qualified Independent Person (QIP) managing the vote once they have been authorised by the CAC, then the voting paperwork must successfully make its way through the postal system to the individual and back again to be counted before the 8th March deadline.
The senior management, who are vigorously opposed to their pharmacists securing an independent voice at work, potentially benefit from a reduced period of voting because unless at least 40% of those entitled to vote return a valid “Yes” vote nothing will change. So, anything that could reduce turnout would work in favour of the company who want to defeat the vote.
The PDA Union have already secured a one-week extension to the ballot period, increasing it from 20 days to 25 days, but if ballot papers aren’t going to be posted out to pharmacists until the middle of this period, this reduces the window during which votes can be returned. If an individual’s ballot papers get lost in post, the wrong address is provided by Boots or if pharmacists have a week or two of holiday scheduled in that period, then like the pharmacist quoted above, they may miss out.
Mr Pitt concluded: “We are calling upon Boots to support our application to the CAC for the voting papers to be released as early as possible into the ballot period. The CAC will already have the data necessary for this ballot and to support the highest level of participation in this democratic process, we will be making an application to the CAC for the ballot papers to be released at the start of the ballot period. The application is more likely to be accepted if senior management support our application. Company leaders will know only too well how challenging it would be to ensure 7,000 pharmacists across 2,500 stores had the opportunity to vote in such a short space of time”
The ballot period is scheduled to start on 4th February 2019 and will run for five weeks. Pharmacists and pre-registration pharmacists at grade 5, 6 & 7 in stores will be entitled to vote.