Advice for new overnight CVS pharmacist

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Are they phasing out 7 on and 7 off as well?
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So my boss sent an email to everyone involved today. Apparently, severance is years service minus one. So its actually slightly crappier than before. And they think they will be able to rehire once severance runs out.

So I'll sit on my behind for a month, then get rehired ASAP.

Unless you are a total hump, you'll get rehired. So the people with seniority are sort of silently pissed that everyone below them is getting what will equate to an extended paid vacation.

Otherwise, I do have one great interview lined up for a non profit that is Mon thru Fri, 8-4/9-5 with on call. That's my unicorn position. Hoping for it, but not counting on it. It's the type of position I'd be insane not to take. If that falls through, PIC position awaits.
 
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trailerpark said:
Are they phasing out 7 on and 7 off as well?
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Remaining 24 hour stores still have 7 on 7 off for overnighters. Day shifters aren't supposed to have 7 on 7 off, though in a company as big as CVS I am sure some do it anyway.
 
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I'm not sure about a ninety minute wait time, but at least 45-60 minute waits are to be expected. I have an overnight pharmacist that does this nearly every time he gets a rush, and the patients are quite understanding. You are there ALONE with possibly several other prescriptions that have already arrived. Anyone who disagrees with this has probably never worked overnights. I also work at CVS as an intern, and have stayed for a few late night shifts when we had the extra hours and my overnight was cool with it (almost always).

If you get behind, just don't put anyone in as a waiter, and if you do, use "S" - special, which can flag a waiter for you without being counted towards your waiter metrics. Say you have a waiter and you've told them 45 minutes, and it's 11 p.m. Put them in as S1145P and it will print "Special" at the top of the drug label. Very useful for keeping yourself sane over night, and you keep your ready by wait time on your terms.

If you think you can pound out a waiter in 10-15 minutes alone with several other waiters....all I can say is that you probably have never tried it. Good luck to you overnight guys, IDK how you stand it.
 
WVUPharm2007 said:
So my boss sent an email to everyone involved today. Apparently, severance is years service minus one. So its actually slightly crappier than before. And they think they will be able to rehire once severance runs out.

So I'll sit on my behind for a month, then get rehired ASAP.

Unless you are a total hump, you'll get rehired. So the people with seniority are sort of silently pissed that everyone below them is getting what will equate to an extended paid vacation.

Otherwise, I do have one great interview lined up for a non profit that is Mon thru Fri, 8-4/9-5 with on call. That's my unicorn position. Hoping for it, but not counting on it. It's the type of position I'd be insane not to take. If that falls through, PIC position awaits.
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Hope it works out for you, but I'd be suspicious of anything they promise me without having it in writing. I recently went part-time to pursue other things on my agenda and the thoughts of all these consolidation and cuts are making me a bit anxious.
 
Can't help but wonder if displaced overnight pharmacists will be competing against the Target pharmacists reapplying for their jobs. Too bad they reduced the severance they promised. They should be concerned about all the disgruntled soon to be former pharmacists staffing their stores overnight right now.
 
So the general consensus is that jobs are being lost instead of created in an already super saturated market

What a joke
 
ChalupaBatman86 said:
They should be concerned about all the disgruntled soon to be former pharmacists staffing their stores overnight right now.
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haha, I know what meant, but when I first read this I thought, wow, CVS is saving money by hiring pharmacists who no longer have a license to staff their store????
 
Shohōsen said:
Sorry, I have taken awhile to reply. Well, I can't answer these questions yet. (That's why I was taking so long to reply.) The overnight RPh who I am replacing decided to wait several extra weeks to retire, so the DM/scheduler stuck me on dayshifts. I have basically been a staff floater pharmacist up to this point. Tonight is my first official time picking up the overnight shift, so I'll let you know how it goes when I have spent enough time to get a feel.

How is your shift going at this point?
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@Shohōsen
I left CVS a while back. No more overnights, no more phone calls, no more patients.
 
WVUPharm2007 said:
So my boss sent an email to everyone involved today. Apparently, severance is years service minus one. So its actually slightly crappier than before. And they think they will be able to rehire once severance runs out.

So I'll sit on my behind for a month, then get rehired ASAP.

Unless you are a total hump, you'll get rehired. So the people with seniority are sort of silently pissed that everyone below them is getting what will equate to an extended paid vacation.

Otherwise, I do have one great interview lined up for a non profit that is Mon thru Fri, 8-4/9-5 with on call. That's my unicorn position. Hoping for it, but not counting on it. It's the type of position I'd be insane not to take. If that falls through, PIC position awaits.
Click to expand...
So a new hire's severance is that they owe CVS money? Good thinking Woonsocket.
 
well this sux for some of you. Fingers crossed you will be able to get on days and be in another position.
 
WVUPharm2007 said:
So my boss sent an email to everyone involved today. Apparently, severance is years service minus one. So its actually slightly crappier than before. And they think they will be able to rehire once severance runs out.

So I'll sit on my behind for a month, then get rehired ASAP.

Unless you are a total hump, you'll get rehired. So the people with seniority are sort of silently pissed that everyone below them is getting what will equate to an extended paid vacation.

Otherwise, I do have one great interview lined up for a non profit that is Mon thru Fri, 8-4/9-5 with on call. That's my unicorn position. Hoping for it, but not counting on it. It's the type of position I'd be insane not to take. If that falls through, PIC position awaits.
Click to expand...

Good luck with the unicorn position. I had wanted to do the month long vaca followed by immediate rehire, but I am too chicken, lol. What if they only have some crappy far away store when my severance runs out? I am too risk averse to go for it. And I am basically happy with how things shook out (for now, we will see once I am at the new store how happy I am).
 
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WVUPharm2007 said:
Didn't get unicorn position. CVS just rehired me at the same rate for day shift.
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I am only liking this because it means you have a job. Not happy you didn't get the job.

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WVUPharm2007 said:
I'm happy that I'm getting paid the same for day shift as I was for night shift.
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Did they promise you a set number of hours? Do you still get the same benefits or were you hired as a new employee and have to wait a year?
 
BMBiology said:
Did they promise you a set number of hours? Do you still get the same benefits or were you hired as a new employee and have to wait a year?
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42hrs/week. Not sure yet on 401k. Seniority/vacation is the same. Health benefits definately have to wait, no way around it due to contract with Aetna. But that's okay, I actually like this Obamacare plan we have.
 
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If you want, you can actually drop the Aetna plan if you become eligible for CVS insurance.
 
genesis09 said:
If you want, you can actually drop the Aetna plan if you become eligible for CVS insurance.
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No, Aetna is what CVS has. And they have to wait 3 months into employment to get me on and its not negotiable, I guess. I currently have a UHC plan with no deductible that I love.
 
So no 401k for 3 months or so. I can deal with that.

This new store is like I'm in another country. About 80% of the patients are Spanish speaking as their primary language. Prescriptions come e-scribed in Spanish. I'm sitting there with google translate trying to figure out what the directions are 4-5 times a day. I need to learn Spanish.
 
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WVUPharm2007 said:
So no 401k for 3 months or so. I can deal with that.

This new store is like I'm in another country. About 80% of the patients are Spanish speaking as their primary language. Prescriptions come e-scribed in Spanish. I'm sitting there with google translate trying to figure out what the directions are 4-5 times a day. I need to learn Spanish.
Click to expand...

You will learn pharmacy Spanish in a hurry. It's amazing how I can communicate what's needed with my limited pigdin Spanish...... Dos tablets cuatro veces al dia
 
Apotheker2015 said:
@Shohōsen
I left CVS a while back. No more overnights, no more phone calls, no more patients.
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Well, several months later, my story has been overall similar to yours. The nightshift is not exactly what I thought it would be--extremely busy all night and very stressful with no technician help. The fact that we are the only 24 hr CVS in the area probably doesn't help. I have tried dayshifts at CVS and don't care for them much either. I am currently seeking a hospital job--still working at CVS until I find one though.

Did I mention that my partner quit last February, and I have been the ONLY night pharmacist since then? I get a few days off here and there, but nowhere near the 7 off I am supposed to...but what really eats me up on the inside is the fact that I am not paid overtime to do this. It's only an extra $5 per hour at CVS and not appropriate compensation IMO for the toll this ordeal is taking on my personal life.
 
Shohōsen said:
Did I mention that my partner quit last February, and I have been the ONLY night pharmacist since then? I get a few days off here and there, but nowhere near the 7 off I am supposed to...but what really eats me up on the inside is the fact that I am not paid overtime to do this. It's only an extra $5 per hour at CVS and not appropriate compensation IMO for the toll this ordeal is taking on my personal life.
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How is this possible, when supposedly there are no pharmacist jobs?
 
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Shohōsen said:
Well, several months later, my story has been overall similar to yours. The nightshift is not exactly what I thought it would be--extremely busy all night and very stressful with no technician help. The fact that we are the only 24 hr CVS in the area probably doesn't help. I have tried dayshifts at CVS and don't care for them much either. I am currently seeking a hospital job--still working at CVS until I find one though.

Did I mention that my partner quit last February, and I have been the ONLY night pharmacist since then? I get a few days off here and there, but nowhere near the 7 off I am supposed to...but what really eats me up on the inside is the fact that I am not paid overtime to do this. It's only an extra $5 per hour at CVS and not appropriate compensation IMO for the toll this ordeal is taking on my personal life.
Click to expand...

Are you in WV or PA? I'm still desperately wanting a night shift position and I'm licensed in both...
 
So guess who just got notified that he's going back to night shift...at a store 12 minutes from his house.

I'm frickin' stoked right now.
 
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WVUPharm2007 said:
So guess who just got notified that he's going back to night shift?
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Eww you gonna be doing 5 on/off 4 on/off? If your area is still doing 7 on 7 off, it's nice. Grats.
 
cvs is losing Federal Employees at year end. night shifts are the first to go on lay off.
 
sosoo said:
cvs is losing Federal Employees at year end. night shifts are the first to go on lay off.
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That is the most useful intel, and we should definitely take this into consideration. Let us not forget what W did when they lost Tricare.


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