Union Stresses Importance of ‘Quality of Life’ Issues, But Little Progress Made in CVS Negotiations
After three full days of contract negotiations between the Teamsters Local 727 Bargaining Committee and CVS management, very little progress has been made toward reaching a new agreement for about 150 Chicago-area pharmacists.
During the April 8 bargaining session, the union strongly reiterated its concerns over pharmacists’ quality of life issues, such as uninterrupted breaks, sufficient tech hours, preservation of the nine-hour workday, and elimination of demeaning tasks that take away from pharmacists’ primary job responsibilities.
“Pharmacists are professionals whose top priorities are patient care and public safety,” said John Coli Jr., President of Local 727. “We are calling on management to take pharmacists’ concerns seriously and make progress on these quality of life issues so pharmacists can get back to focusing on taking care of their customers.”
Local 727 also made it clear at the bargaining table that management’s repeated demand to bargain over union representation status of pharmacy managers (PICs) is unlawful.
Negotiations are scheduled to resume April 12 and April 13. The current three-year contract expires May 7, 2016.
If you have questions, contact your Local 727 business representative, Melissa Senatore, at (847) 696-7500 or [email protected].
