so many reasons NOT to work for CVS

I WAS a pharmacy manager for a boston store for 11 years.
The job: retail pharmacy- patients are sick so they're grumpy. always give them the benefit of the doubt because they're "always" right. after all your everyday hardwork, if you get 1 unhappy customer who actually files a complaint- whether its "too long a wait", "the co-pay was too much", "the item was not in-stock", "item was not ready as promised" or just simply "the staff is not friendly" - expect a sit down talk and action plan with your supervisor.
Oh, did I forget to mention that you are severely UNDERSTAFFED. Go figure out why. for that kind of work, not to mention being on your feet every minute, with hardly any time to go to the bathroom, dealing with long lines, not to mention 3 pharmacy calls all at once, you get paid anywhere from $8 to $10 as a new pharmacy technician, with annual maximum raise of 3% (0.30 cents)-if you're lucky.
The benefits package might sound appealing but if you take out the premiums you'd pay for the cheapest medical insurance- you barely have enough for coffee or gas money.
If you're smart enough- go figure why CVS is so desperate to hire pharmacists and pharmacy technicians- people are quitting. CVS is not expanding nor opening new stores, at least not in boston.
To the brave ones who still wants to give CVS a try- good luck to you.

james said: I WAS a pharmacy manager for a boston store for 11 years.
The job: retail pharmacy- patients are sick so they're grumpy. always give them the benefit of the doubt because they're "always" right. after all your everyday hardwork, if you get 1 unhappy customer who actually files a complaint- whether its "too long a wait", "the co-pay was too much", "the item was not in-stock", "item was not ready as promised" or just simply "the staff is not friendly" - expect a sit down talk and action plan with your supervisor.
Oh, did I forget to mention that you are severely UNDERSTAFFED. Go figure out why. for that kind of work, not to mention being on your feet every minute, with hardly any time to go to the bathroom, dealing with long lines, not to mention 3 pharmacy calls all at once, you get paid anywhere from $8 to $10 as a new pharmacy technician, with annual maximum raise of 3% (0.30 cents)-if you're lucky.
The benefits package might sound appealing but if you take out the premiums you'd pay for the cheapest medical insurance- you barely have enough for coffee or gas money.
If you're smart enough- go figure why CVS is so desperate to hire pharmacists and pharmacy technicians- people are quitting. CVS is not expanding nor opening new stores, at least not in boston.
To the brave ones who still wants to give CVS a try- good luck to you.

CVS is a terrible place to work. Every week there was something wrong with my paycheck, (missing hours, different pay rate, etc.) and the supervisor refused to do anything about it. You ARE understaffed, they set up the shedule so that you will be sprinting for 13 hours with no lunch, no breaks, or no rest. CVS is more worried about protecting internal and external theft, than allowing the pharmacy to do their job. CVS gives to the customer at the expense of the employees.

james in Brookline, Massachusetts said: I WAS a pharmacy manager for a boston store for 11 years.
The job: retail pharmacy- patients are sick so they're grumpy. always give them the benefit of the doubt because they're "always" right. after all your everyday hardwork, if you get 1 unhappy customer who actually files a complaint- whether its "too long a wait", "the co-pay was too much", "the item was not in-stock", "item was not ready as promised" or just simply "the staff is not friendly" - expect a sit down talk and action plan with your supervisor.
Oh, did I forget to mention that you are severely UNDERSTAFFED. Go figure out why. for that kind of work, not to mention being on your feet every minute, with hardly any time to go to the bathroom, dealing with long lines, not to mention 3 pharmacy calls all at once, you get paid anywhere from $8 to $10 as a new pharmacy technician, with annual maximum raise of 3% (0.30 cents)-if you're lucky.
The benefits package might sound appealing but if you take out the premiums you'd pay for the cheapest medical insurance- you barely have enough for coffee or gas money.
If you're smart enough- go figure why CVS is so desperate to hire pharmacists and pharmacy technicians- people are quitting. CVS is not expanding nor opening new stores, at least not in boston.
To the brave ones who still wants to give CVS a try- good luck to you.

Hi,
I found your email very interesting. I am an IT Recruiter, in RI, and have been trying to help CVS fill one or any of their IS positions, but the only way to help is by emailing the company as a vendor. Do they want to fill these positions or not. It's frustrating for me when I see a need, am tring to help THEM out, but.........impossible to talk to a human being. As if anyone ever reads people's emails, resumes on line, yeah right. Take care.

If you a hard worker don't go to work for CVS Pharmacy.
They will use you and abuse you

Cvs is the worst compamy I ever worked for

CVS needs to be sued in Georgia!!! They use and abuse there Pharmacy Tech. Most techs don't get breaks and only if the pharmacy is not busy can we take our lunch. I've worked 10 hours with no lunch. Is there anything I can do and who do I report this too????

usedandabused in Duluth, Georgia said: CVS needs to be sued in Georgia!!! They use and abuse there Pharmacy Tech. Most techs don't get breaks and only if the pharmacy is not busy can we take our lunch. I've worked 10 hours with no lunch. Is there anything I can do and who do I report this too????

Unfortunately in Georgia the labor laws don't provide any provisions for meal times or rest periods. I can't believe it myself. They can literally work you to the bone and its perfectly legal. Here is the link to the Georgia Dept of Labor laws. Look under Basic Wage Standards:
www.dol.gov/esa/whd/regs/compliance/hrg.htm

How about this. I was hired as an overnight supervisor. Later I find out there's another guy who is being ransfered for the same position. Since he was working at CVS longer, and hired the same time I was, he would be made supervisor first. So after one night of training he becomes supervisor. So I'm all excited because they're telling me the next week I'll be made supervisor and more people can be trained so I'm no longer working 8 days in a row. So the next week comes...and nothing. Instead I'm being yelled at by my supervisor (the guy from above) that my facing isnt' good enough; I've gotta move faster and move things closer to the line. He also tells me its his word on how well I'm doing that will determine how I advance. So I work on it. I get faster, make all the labels face the right way, etc. Then I go on vacation for a week (pre-scheduled before I started working). I get back and there's this new guy who is also training for an overnight supervisor. By this time I know that basically anyone who works night is considered a "supervisor". But this guy is being trained everything that I'm not. All I've been trained with is facing and sale tags. He's being called in early to learn how to handle the money, learning all these things about promotions. I ask my supervisor what's going on, how come I'm not being taught all this and he tells me that he doesn't know, he's just doing what he's told. Apparently upper up is telling him to teach this new guy, who has only been working at CVS for a week and half all this stuff, yet not me anything. I've been there a month and I'm giving it another two weeks after I talk to my manager about this. Its ridiculous, I was hired first, but apparently CVS tends to forget they hired people....