Sacramento, CA – Today, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), Western States Council celebrated the California State Assembly’s approval of SB 362 (Newman). SB 362 would prohibit the application of sales quotas or performance-based metrics that interfere with the professional judgment of pharmacists.
“As a pharmacist, my days are extremely busy from when I clock into when I go home,” said Jessica Crowley, RPh and member of UFCW 770. “I hardly ever have time to go to the bathroom, let alone take a lunch break to rest. With miles-long to-do lists, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are constantly between a rock and a hard place when we have to comply with profit-driven corporate quota requirements. Our number one priority must be our patients, not ensuring our employers make a profit. SB 362 will still allow companies to monitor their employees’ performance, but most importantly, it protects patients by ensuring pharmacists, and all pharmacy staff, are not subject to corporate-imposed quotas that divert our attention away from our number one priority: to keep our patients safe. California’s UFCW member pharmacists are proud to support this essential public health measure, and we urge the Governor to do the same.”
An exposé by NBC News shows just how overwhelmed pharmacists are with their miles-long to-do lists: “From 12-hour shifts so busy they don’t have time to go to the bathroom or eat to crying in their cars every day after work or lying awake at night worrying about mistakes they might have made while rushing, they described an industry of health care professionals at the breaking point.” The piece also details how the practice of using quotas to boost profits takes a toll on pharmacists: “‘Basically, your day is timed out by the minute — it’s like the worst case of micromanaging you can imagine…’”
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 30, 2021
Contact: Jenna Thompson, 949.246.1620, [email protected]