CVS Complaint - Unacceptible Work Environment - Uncaring Company - Pharmacy - Las Vegas, NV

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-04-06:

I tend to take reviews like this with a grain of salt, but because this is well written and you remained calm and seem genuinely concerned, it makes it very believable.

People should be able to have confidence in their pharmacy, but this review reminds me that they still need to be very careful and never take for granted that everything is being done accurately, especially if it's a busy pharmacy. I'm sure what you described goes on more than customers realize. Very helpful.

Posted by Dryad on 2010-04-06:

Venice, I could not have said it better +10.

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-04-06:

Thanks, Dryad. The way a review is written really makes a difference in whether or not I take it seriously. I think this one is a good warning about pharmacies in general and something I'll keep in mind.

Posted by clutzycook on 2010-04-06:

If what you say is true and you aren't provided with the opportunity for breaks and lunch, file a complaint with your state's labor board.

Posted by KingJames on 2010-04-06:

nicely written review. stressed out tech I sure hope you find a place that does appreciate you. it's apparent you do value the customer and I sure hope folks take your advice and call the corporate #.

Posted by goduke on 2010-04-06:

Have you brought your concerns to the attention of your Regional Pharmacy Supv or the District Manager? How about to the field HR representative?

Posted by Fred Farberger on 2010-04-07:

According to this, CVS is deplorable when maintaining relations with regards to the staff. As so many posted here it appears they will find the smallest "infraction" possible to terminate employees who are just doing the best they can with little monetary increases. More CVS stores seem to be abusing the rights of the employees, judging by these articles. Calling or even writing here is not enough, more individuals need to come forth who actually work in these horrendous conditions.

Posted by goduke on 2010-04-07:

I'm just not seeing a plethora of complaints from folks about being fired because "they are doing the best they can." Any retail environment is production related -- you have to be able to keep up with the work. Thousands of CVS stores and Walgreens stores are able to keep up with the workload and keep up with the quality end of it as well.

Posted by pharmslave on 2010-04-10:

I will not do business with any of those greedy corporations.

Posted by raven2010 on 2010-04-10:

You know, I have read quite a few reviews by CVS pharm techs across the country in the last few months, on this and a few other sites. ALL, and I mean ALL of them say virtually the same thing.

Makes me wonder if their cop fat cats have taken things a bit too far. One fo these days, a worn out [harm tech is going to contribute to the illness or even death of a child...then what?

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-04-10:

Then what? Good question. It's another case of nothing being done until something happens. Someone always has to pay with their life to get these big companies to take action.

Posted by cgpharm on 2010-04-27:

Actually at CVS we do appreciate the customer. Sure, there are always going to be people in any job that are just there to get a paycheck (as this person is... ie. "Oh, and denying raises across the board doesn't help employee morale either"). Every company makes paycuts, but it also depends on how well your store is doing. If you can't retain customers because your technicians are complete garbage, then yes... The store will suffer.

Don't get upset because your DM decided to skip a few raises in your district. The entire CVS/caremark CORPORATION is NOT like this. It's all in your DM and Regional manager's hands. My district has done so well my technicians get bigger raises. My pharmacy's script count has gone up since last year tremendously- hence more hours and a bigger yearly bonus for myself.

Business is business and at the end of the day you are just a technician. Don't act as if you are indispensable. When you study 6+ years and get your license as a pharmacist and the entire day to day operations of running the pharmacy rely solely on yourself and the team under you, then you have every right to get upset. Until that happens, don't post things on the internet you have no clue what you are talking about. People read these and it's making a great company look like the anti-christ. Obviously things have not gone your way since you have been with CVS- don't blame it on the company; it's your problem. If you want to work hard and get compliments and help build your pharmacy team- by all means, do that. That's how a pharmacy is run properly (which most of the CVS stores are).

BTW, I was a CPhT. with CVS for 4 years before I even GOT to pharmacy school- So I do know exactly what I am talking about.

Posted by no.mas.estupido on 2010-06-05:

"Business is business and at the end of the day you are just a technician. Don't act as if you are indispensable." Ahhhhh... isn't it great to be a pharmacist? You ARE indispensable.. because there is a shortage.. just wait your turn until all these new grads come into the market and then you get to fight tooth and nail with the surplus. Just remember that even if they are just a "Technician" you still depend on them more than you want to admit.. what would you do if there was a technician shortage? GASP! you'd have to actually get out of your corner and work?

Posted by old fart on 2010-06-05:

There must be a technician shortage.. My grandson just graduated with a doctorate in pharmacology and had 5 companies wiling to hire him the next day...

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-06-05:

Congratulations to you and your grandson, OF! That's quite an accomplishment.

Posted by Kat72280 on 2010-06-13:

I am one of the employees that has recently been fired by CVS. She is exactly right. CVS is more concerned about 'numbers' than anything else right now. Our store took pride in our customer service, we all wanted to be there, and did our jobs to the best of our ability, and all we ever heard was that our shelves weren't clean enough. Our "readyfill" numbers weren't high enough (come on! We can't force people to use an automatic refill system that has so many flaws, it's more harm than good!). They cut hours tremendously, expect us to do more with less help. The fact is, you can't do that in pharmacy. We can work faster, but that also means we aren't working accurately. Mistakes are going to happen then! I have seen many other 'old timers' lose their jobs over stupid reasons for CVS. And they are being replaced by just out of school, don't know how to treat the customers, pharmacists. I've been in the business for almost 15 years. Numbers can kill customer service. CVS firing these people has absolutely nothing, in most cases, to do with their overall job performance. There are underlying causes that are prejudiced and discriminatory. Currently our district has a temporary manager that is known as the terminator. He's brought in to fire people, then he moves on. So far, he's left nothing but destruction in our district.

Posted by raven2010 on 2010-06-14:

I agree, Kat---pharmacy isn't the place to cut corners. Absolute perfection is required with meds. Stressed out techs simply cannot be perfect. they will end up killing someone.

Posted by Skye on 2010-06-14:

This is an excellent and informative review. It's sad that everything is about the almighty dollar. They want you to do more more more, but do not expect anything, just your pay, and maybe just maybe a bathroom break once in awhile, same as lunch.

OP, have you ever considered looking into employment with another pharmacy? How much can a person take, ya know. I'm sure many of use can relate to having worked somewhere at one time or another, where it was unbearable. I'm a vet tech, and the first animal hosptial I applied to when I moved, hired me, and it was a nightmare. The doctor was a big scam artist, who did take advantage of owners, he would lie to people into thinking their pet would not survive if they did not accept certain surgeries. He would then leave the room and people would ask me questions because he left already. I would always tell them to get a second opinion, on certain procedures he wanted to do. One of his favorites, was to tell an owner, if their dogs had a lick granulomar *bald, sore spot from constant licking, the only thing that could be done was to laser it off. Not true, you don't laser off a sore. They could be treated with antibiotics, and wrap the area so the dog could not lick. Many dogs have allergies and do this. His favorite thing was to start ranting and raving if we weren't at his beck and call, almost knocking on the bathroom door to come out. Maybe he has stock in CVS??

Posted by amymac14843 on 2010-06-22:

Skye---this is totally unrelated, but thank you for that tid-bit about the dogs. My poor dog has bad skin and licks and chews constantly! Now I know to take him in for anti-biotics. Thanks again!

Posted by med123 on 2010-07-07:

This is a very well written letter.

I happen to be in store-management with CVS, and know that this tech is struggling, and for good reasons. It's not her fault, and it's not just her store. CVS DOES care more about how close-to-the-edge the products are rather than quality and customer service.

I do believe that a store should always be at it's nicest, but never should that come before customer service and quality.

Country wide, CVS is having issues with it's corporate employees, as well as inner store employees. I myself have been having on and off battles with it, as a manager. I was threatened with my job when my grandmother died, as they would only give me 2 days to go out of city to watch her pass, then out of state to plan her funeral, and set up arrangements for her things/will/etc. this upset me, highly. I told them if they were willing to fire me over something so dear to me, than expect a lawsuit. Needless to say they didn't.
The techs are only allowed so many training hours, as are the managers. Basically, we're thrown into a cage of lions with no whip or protection.

I do love my job, don't get me wrong. I love my customers, as they love me, and we're quite the family. But the employees can't even have the comfort of going to their bosses with inside issues, only because they're always told excuses, lies, or terminated for caring about their wellbeing.

I am moving out of state, soon, expecting to leave CVS. As i said earlier, I love my job, but I always said the only reason I would leave, is if I couldn't afford it on my own anymore. They take away our raises that we work all year for, sometimes two years for, that are already next to nothing, to pay for remodeling of a store that isn't needed, or to pay for their bonuses.
As I understand, even they have bosses, and people to approve this as well, but what none of them understand, is the people doing the heavy lifting, the mind work, and physical, are the ones getting paid 1/4th of what they are. without bonuses. with 30 minute breaks in which most of the time you can only take 10 minutes because they can't hire on anymore help because they're only allowed so little hours.

Right now I work at a 13 hour a day store. its 7 days a week. we have 3 managers there, myself being one of them. we have no cashiers, as we do not have the hours to hire one, or else one of us will take a hard cut back on hours. since I get paid so little, I hope to goodness it isn't me.

This job is hard, so I can sympathize with the techs, the cashiers, old, and new employees.
It's not cake. Especially when dealing with people who for some reason think it is.

Good writing, thanks for not blowing up like some other employees who really need a break, or reality check. I've been there, a vacation does the trick. But when you're working 6 days a week, 12 hours at a time, and covering for people who were terminated, quit, or went MIA, having those two weeks of vacation is pointless, because you're not allowed to use them. "We are a company, empowered to care." I'd like to know who wrote that. ha.

Posted by minaminamina on 2010-08-13:

The general public doesn't know that pharmacy staff don't have lunch time. We eat our lunch while we are working and that is the general practice. If you talk to any pharmacist or pharmacy tech, they will tell you there is no such thing as lunch hour in their job description.

I work as a pharmacist in a chain store and we eat standing while in the middle of work, 5 phone lines are ringing off the hook. We all do that and it's a common practice across the nation for pharmacy staff. It's crazy. I know.

Posted by ChrisT05 on 2010-10-16:

cqpharm just because she is concerned about her pay (which probably is barely livable) does not mean that she is just in it for the paycheck, ask yourself if you would go into work without getting paid and realize that as much as someone cares about a business and its service, its not a charity, cost of living goes up and employees at CVS were told they'd get a yearly raised based on performance, we'll if everyone gets a raise of 2% (a rating of 2 or needing improvement) then what incentive is there for those employees that work at a 4 or 5 to keep working at that level? Yet many do becuase they do care about their customers/patients. CVS is cutting across the board and was doing so even before the economy changed in order to make purchases of other companies and give good ol Tom his 8 million dollar bonus. Eventually doing 'more with less' becomes impossible and just becomes doing less for the customer, eventually cutting to the bone goes too far and becomes cutting through the bone so you don't have a leg to stand on anymore. When that happens customers flee and companies implode, Tom knows CVS is in the death spiral, that's why he's jumping ship. The company could have been a huge success story for decades to come if it continued to BALANCE costs and service like it used to, alas the leadership got greedy, cut costs beyond the bone to milk short term profits and are now deploying the goldem parachutes. In short (too late), listen to this OP, she speaks the truth.

Posted by buckeyemom2006 on 2010-12-31:

CVS is only worried about numbers and as for going to higher ups through the company forget it you will probably be fired.
This is all employees across the board. Pharmacist are being fired for no reason, hours are cut for some and not others, and they are on a hiring freeze yet somehow hired in from a competitor to fill a vacant spot when they have a list of floats wanting a store. Worst place to work!!!

Posted by Leslie on 2011-07-06:

CVS is the most evil place to work

Posted by Leslie on 2011-07-06:

CVS is the most evil place to work

Posted by suzie on 2011-12-28:

The above Statement from the Pharmacy tech is 100 percent accurate, they are cutting the hours so much and the paperwork the calls the insurance issues are so overwhelming, call my doctor, or yes i am covered for this drug my doctor said so, someone above said call the pdm the dm the rm to complain and its coming from them cut cut cut, taking a break while you are there is quite impossible. are you going to wait for me to get back? i DONT THINK SO ..

Posted by pharmacist on 2012-06-25:

I am telling you this review is 100% accurate. I was a CVS pharmacy manager for years because we were unfortunately bought out by CVS. This company doesn't care if techs or Rphs take a lunch/breaks or not. Rphs were exempt from lunch but my techs often were not given a chance to leave their post simply because the pharmacies were constantly under staff. I would truely like any former CVS technicians file a report against them violating labor law for not given any chance to take any breaks or can't take lunch on time. All these years I wonder how CVS can get away from it. The management up there including regional DM or pharmacy supervisers all share the same CVS culture, which is to get the numbers up. That's all they care, nothing more, not their employees, not the customers but only the numbers. Every day at work we were getting faxes from the sup about whether reports were finished or not. (these reports took away all the time that we were supposed to be doing real work and helping customers). If so happened they were not done, the office would call you and expected you to drop everything you are doing (even though you have customers waiting) but get those reports done right away. (100% true) The pharmacist and manager bonus are based on these numbers. So I assumed that go the same to the supervisers. They tried to tell us those "courtesy calls" would provide better patient care. Why can't they just say it honestly they want to increase script count? There were so much going on there it is beyond words. You really have to work there to experience the evil from this company. I am 100% positive this doesn't happen to only one or a few stores, it happens to all of them. The day I quit CVS, I know I would never look back. Lots of good experienced pharmacists left CVS last couple years and more are leaving. Now all they can hire are the new grads who don't know any better.

Posted by PharmRph on 2012-06-25:

Posted by newBfarmTec on 2012-11-05:

i agree with all the angry posts against "ready-fill" I ask out loud would you like to enroll, and stare them down till they say "no" give a big smile and wish them a wonderful day! it's awful having nothing to offer these people when they ask "why do i have to come up here 5 times a month, can't i get all my rx's on the same day with ready fill?" I smile and say sorry. the way i was trained to.
Now i am at my 2nd write up, the 1st one was for hanging up on a customer- that i helped over the phone, and had nothing else to ask, just complaining that i was "going to hang up on her befoe she said bye!" and with 5 people in line and a drive-thru full of cars, a 'floater pharmacist' with little experiance and myself with even less than 3 months experiance. I hung up on the cow! and continued with my duitys like the 10 eyes staring at me from the other side of the register...... and YES THAT WAS MY 1st write up! the "cow" called the store to complain. And with in that same month I was WROTE UP again, for handing off the wrong rx (after asking 3 times for a break, and being told to stay at a station that someone else was suppose to rotate to!) I am wondering if I am getting a 3rd write up just for the hell of it so they can be done with me? Or if the other pharmacist was right, and I must violate the same issue 3 times before losing my job?! any body know the "write up rules?" I worked at CVS everyday like pay was a plus! but then we got a new software system and the pharmacist was stressed and shes acting like a different person....... am i on my way out? this isn't good should i transfer? will that help?!