Covid-19

Chancellor must include pharmacists in pay rise

Following the omission of pharmacy professionals from the Government’s pay rise for public sector workers, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has written to the Chancellor to demand urgent action.

The announcement made earlier this week included pay rises for a number of professional groups including doctors, dentists and teachers. However, pharmacists, as well as nurses and social care workers were not included.

In response, the RPS is calling the chancellor to take action and extend this pay rise to all pharmacists and recognise the profession’s continued dedication to patient care and the NHS.   

This letter to the Chancellor builds on our asks for additional funding for community pharmacy teams to support the network for the future and to help prepare for a potential 2nd wave of Covid-19 this winter. 

Commenting on the society’s response, RPS President Sandra Gidley said:

“As the professional body representing the third largest health care profession, we strongly urge the Chancellor to take action and extend this pay rise to all pharmacists, many of whom work on the front-line. Pay settlements for the pharmacy profession have not kept up with the pace of inflation over the past decade, effectively resulting in pay regression. The omission of pharmacists and their teams from this round of pay awards only compounds this issue and quite frankly is yet another kick in the teeth for the profession.

‘’The pharmacy response and clinical leadership shown during the pandemic has been exceptional and has attracted unparalleled public acknowledgement and support across the country. It is incredibly disappointing therefore that the omission of pharmacists and their teams in the current support for pay increases is yet another example of the poor acknowledgement by the Government of the essential role of pharmacists and their teams.’’

Click here for the letter in full.

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