CVS making cashiers/techs pay (literally!)

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
H

HaleyRX

Full Member
10+ Year Member
5+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Nov 25, 2006
Messages
122
Reaction score
0
CVS in our area is starting this new thing where techs and cashiers in the pharmacy have to wear a button that says "did I say your name?" and it has a dollar attached to it. The first dollar is given by the company, but if you don't say a customer's name and they call you on it, they get the $1 and you replace it WITH YOUR OWN MONEY. You have to have a button with $1 attached at all times.

Does anyone think this is ridiculous? I mean I suppose it is effective but after the way CVS works their employees, they want their money too? I see a lot of people getting upset about this.

Is this nationwide or is it a Southern thing?
Members don't see this ad.
 
HaleyRX said:
CVS in our area is starting this new thing where techs and cashiers in the pharmacy have to wear a button that says "did I say your name?" and it has a dollar attached to it. The first dollar is given by the company, but if you don't say a customer's name and they call you on it, they get the $1 and you replace it WITH YOUR OWN MONEY. You have to have a button with $1 attached at all times.

Does anyone think this is ridiculous? I mean I suppose it is effective but after the way CVS works their employees, they want their money too? I see a lot of people getting upset about this.

Is this nationwide or is it a Southern thing?
Click to expand...

It's fine until that employee goes under the minimum wage. And then it's illegal.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires payment of at least the federal minimum wage to covered, nonexempt employees.
An employer of a tipped employee is only required to pay $2.13 an hour in direct wages if that amount plus the tips received equals at least the federal minimum wage, the employee retains all tips and the employee customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tips.
If an employee's tips combined with the employer's direct wages of at least $2.13 an hour do not equal the federal minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
The pharmacist is next.
 
Can't wait to see the epic stream of bull**** accusations customers make when they realize they can get that dollar. How many store managers are going to back up the employee when a person claims that s/he wasn't called by name? How the eff are cashiers supposed to know the person's name if s/he isn't picking up an rx?
 
This is so stupid that I really don't even believe its for real. Do people really want to hear their name shouted while they are buying Viagra or Valtrex?
 
I would personally try to fall below minimum wage if I was in this situation. That might make for a nice lawsuit.
 
zelman said:
I would personally try to fall below minimum wage if I was in this situation. That might make for a nice lawsuit.
Click to expand...

I can see the courtroom testimony now.

"He then proceeded to call me every name but my name."

"He called me several names, which hurt my feelings."

"When I asked for a pen and paper to write my name, he said he didn't speak English. He then proceeded to ask if I had my CVS card."
 
A dollar bill attached to your name tag? How classy.... It made me thought of strip clubs actually how weird....:rofl:
Must be a store based thing. Perhaps struggling with a metric? I don't think patients want us to say their names out loud any way especially when there are other people around. :luck:
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Next thing you know they will install metal poles in stores with strobe lights and dark rooms. This is messed up.
 
HaleyRX said:
CVS in our area is starting this new thing where techs and cashiers in the pharmacy have to wear a button that says "did I say your name?" and it has a dollar attached to it. The first dollar is given by the company, but if you don't say a customer's name and they call you on it, they get the $1 and you replace it WITH YOUR OWN MONEY. You have to have a button with $1 attached at all times.

Does anyone think this is ridiculous? I mean I suppose it is effective but after the way CVS works their employees, they want their money too? I see a lot of people getting upset about this.

Is this nationwide or is it a Southern thing?
Click to expand...
THIS IS WRONG!!!
awval999 said:
It's fine until that employee goes under the minimum wage. And then it's illegal.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires payment of at least the federal minimum wage to covered, nonexempt employees.
An employer of a tipped employee is only required to pay $2.13 an hour in direct wages if that amount plus the tips received equals at least the federal minimum wage, the employee retains all tips and the employee customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tips.
If an employee's tips combined with the employer's direct wages of at least $2.13 an hour do not equal the federal minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference.
Click to expand...
WTH are you talking about? These are hourly employees, not tipped employees - so what they get paid is what they are paid and there should be no 'going under' or whatever bs point you're trying to make.
 
PharmDstudent said:
THIS IS WRONG!!!
WTH are you talking about? These are hourly employees, not tipped employees - so what they get paid is what they are paid and there should be no 'going under' or whatever bs point you're trying to make.
Click to expand...

Tips (if any) + base wage (minimum $2.13 if tipped, $7.25 if not) cannot go under $7.25/hr. Sorry reading comprehension isn't your strong suit.
 
The GF works at CVS.. just told her about this and she laughed and said it doesn't surprise her with the way things are going. It's apparently getting pretty bad in terms of how they are drastically cutting tech hours. The whole enterprise seems really shiesty to me.. she's the PIC of a store (2nd busiest in the district) and at the beginning of the year they promised her a tech boost of ~15-20 hours, instead they actually CUT her tech help by 20 hours. The DM basically lied to her repeatedly for months while they were waiting for their new sheets to come out (not sure on the specifics of how their system works but apparently they get their numbers straight from "the top"). The sad part of it all is that during that time (when he said they were getting more hours to when they finally got these sheets) she was scheduling at their allotted margin which now will basically hurt her metrics for the rest of the year since she should have been scheduling at the reduced hours the past 4-5 months. She worked her ass off when she got there to bring that store out of "challenged" status and this is how they treat their top employees.. they'll lie to you until the last moment and then blame you for all of it.
 
Skrumpy said:
The GF works at CVS.. just told her about this and she laughed and said it doesn't surprise her with the way things are going. It's apparently getting pretty bad in terms of how they are drastically cutting tech hours. The whole enterprise seems really shiesty to me.. she's the PIC of a store (2nd busiest in the district) and at the beginning of the year they promised her a tech boost of ~15-20 hours, instead they actually CUT her tech help by 20 hours. The DM basically lied to her repeatedly for months while they were waiting for their new sheets to come out (not sure on the specifics of how their system works but apparently they get their numbers straight from "the top"). The sad part of it all is that during that time (when he said they were getting more hours to when they finally got these sheets) she was scheduling at their allotted margin which now will basically hurt her metrics for the rest of the year since she should have been scheduling at the reduced hours the past 4-5 months. She worked her ass off when she got there to bring that store out of "challenged" status and this is how they treat their top employees.. they'll lie to you until the last moment and then blame you for all of it.
Click to expand...

You are clueless. Her DM did not lie to her. Do you understand what I just told you? If you are bright, you will figure it out....
 
Old Timer said:
You are clueless. Her DM did not lie to her. Do you understand what I just told you? If you are bright, you will figure it out....
Click to expand...

You are implying that the DM was also lied to and thus he was not culpable in disseminating the lie. I disagree with you and if you truly believe that.. perhaps you are the one who is clueless.

Definition of a lie, with the most important component highlighted for your convenience.
To lie is to deliver a false statement to another person which the speaking person knows is not the whole truth, intentionally.
Click to expand...

I don't believe for one second that these DM's aren't involved somewhat in the scam upper management is running. At the end of the day they want to cover their own asses and look good to their bosses and will **** on anyone who stands in their way. For an "Old Timer" I would expect someone less naive.. but perhaps you are attempting to defend the honor of your fellow DMs?
 
awval999 said:
Tips (if any) + base wage (minimum $2.13 if tipped, $7.25 if not) cannot go under $7.25/hr. Sorry reading comprehension isn't your strong suit.
Click to expand...
Again, WTH are you talking about? We're not talking about whether or not they get minimum wage. We're talking about employees being cheated out of their own money by their employer. If a company agrees to pay an employee X number of dollars per hour then that's what they have to pay them. They can't change their minds on a whim and start paying you $11/hour minus whatever money you lose because you didn't perform well in the new Name Game contest without prior notice and probably a lot of paperwork. Sorry, but it doesn't work like that.
 
Skrumpy said:
You are implying that the DM was also lied to and thus he was not culpable in disseminating the lie. I disagree with you and if you truly believe that.. perhaps you are the one who is clueless.

Definition of a lie, with the most important component highlighted for your convenience.


I don't believe for one second that these DM's aren't involved somewhat in the scam upper management is running. At the end of the day they want to cover their own asses and look good to their bosses and will **** on anyone who stands in their way. For an "Old Timer" I would expect someone less naive.. but perhaps you are attempting to defend the honor of your fellow DMs?
Click to expand...

I'm not a DM nor am I naive. I telling that I know for a fact the DM was telling the truth as he or she understood it to be. A good DM needs to have his pharmacists on his side or he will NEVER be successful. What does he get out of lying?
 
Is this really true? I will have to ask my old CVS co-workers.
 
Old Timer said:
I'm not a DM nor am I naive. I telling that I know for a fact the DM was telling the truth as he or she understood it to be. A good DM needs to have his pharmacists on his side or he will NEVER be successful. What does he get out of lying?
Click to expand...

How do you know for a fact he was telling the truth? How do you know he's a good DM? Maybe he was an unwitting pawn in some sort of elaborate, 5 month long, upper management scheme to trick the PICs in that region into thinking they were going to actually get more help (to what end I'm unsure) OR perhaps he wanted to string them along in the busiest period of the year giving them that carrot on a stick that hope was around the corner. Invoking the use of Occam's razor here would point me in the simplest theory.. that he lied. Why did he lie? For the same reason most people lie, because they have something to gain from it. He gains several months of highly motivated (maybe even happy? or at least less belligerent) uncomplaining workers, perhaps a hope that some may forget the lies he told them, and when the ruse is up he can simply blame the corporate scapegoat. I honestly could think of many more reasons for him to lie than I can think up for him to tell the truth. I agree with you that a good DM needs to have most of his pharmacists on his side to be fully successful. That doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of bad DMs out there. I'm sure a thread could be filled with horror stories that everyone could share.
 
Keep it simple. Never trust CVS. Upper management makes the decision. Middle management enforce it. Pharmacists get burn.

Repeat cycle.
 
pharm B said:
I can see the courtroom testimony now.

"He then proceeded to call me every name but my name."

"He called me several names, which hurt my feelings."

"When I asked for a pen and paper to write my name, he said he didn't speak English. He then proceeded to ask if I had my CVS card."
Click to expand...
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOk6echpeqQ[/YOUTUBE]
 
Last edited:
MountainPharmD said:
Hey OldTimer! They got you wearing $5 on your button?
Click to expand...
Of course not. It's just some wing nut somewhere in the CVS universe trying to figure out why his numbers suck and come up with this rectum derived edict....
 
Old Timer said:
I telling that I know for a fact the DM was telling the truth as he or she understood it to be.
Click to expand...

Why does it matter that the DM was also lied to? The point here is that the pharmacist got screwed
 
I hope the minimum wage lawsuit happens soon so this farce is over. CVS obviously doesn't realize some people prefer not to be called by their name... like me. I have a foreign name so it gets routinely butchered. CVS, please, just save me and yourself the embarrassment.
 
BMBiology said:
Why does it matter that the DM was also lied to? The point here is that the pharmacist got screwed
Click to expand...

It's hard to get screwed when you're making six figures...... Keep it in perspective....
 
If CVS continues this policy, the predictable end result will be the best technicians & cashiers will get jobs elsewhere. The ones remaining will be the ones who can't get jobs anywhere else, or who have no experience and will leave as soon as the get a minimum amount of experience, or who are just a few months from retirement & will grin and bear it until they can retire. Perhaps this is what CVS intends?
 
DiomedeaExulans said:
I hope the minimum wage lawsuit happens soon so this farce is over. CVS obviously doesn't realize some people prefer not to be called by their name... like me. I have a foreign name so it gets routinely butchered. CVS, please, just save me and yourself the embarrassment.
Click to expand...

You're in retail. Either get over it or leave. That's like saying "I'm a computer engineer but my boss should realize that I don't like sitting in front of a computer". Come up with a shorter name or something? Do you want people to just call you "pharmacist"?
 
How are they supposed to know their names?
If I go pick up my girlfriend's prescription, do I get a dollar if they don't call me by her name?
If I never tell them my name, do they have to guess?
Do they need to check ID on all Rxs just to get a first name to call someone?
 
You retail pharmacists are so damn whiny and for no good reason. You are in RETAIL. Get over it. Everything you experience is what every other RETAIL employee experiences but you get paid over $100,000 and the rest get minimum wage. There are millions of retail workers that would laugh in your face for complaining about the things you complain about. You work in a retail business, get paid lots of money, what the hell are you complaining about?
 
BenJammin said:
You retail pharmacists are so damn whiny and for no good reason. You are in RETAIL. Get over it. Everything you experience is what every other RETAIL employee experiences but you get paid over $100,000 and the rest get minimum wage. There are millions of retail workers that would laugh in your face for complaining about the things you complain about. You work in a retail business, get paid lots of money, what the hell are you complaining about?
Click to expand...

I don't get your point. Just because pharmacies are located in a retail, doesn't mean healthcare professionals should be treated like they are employees at McDonalds. We are dealing with someone's medications here, not burgers and fries.
 
BMBiology said:
I don't get your point. Just because pharmacies are located in a retail, doesn't mean healthcare professionals should be treated like they are employees at McDonalds. We are dealing with someone's medications here, not burgers and fries.
Click to expand...

You are a retail employee in a retail business. It doesn't matter what your profession is. You would see the same kind of treatment in a retail environment if you were a doctor, attorney, or whoever. Again, you probably don't see what I'm talking about because you're so engrained in the system. Millions of retail employees are laughing at you so just do your job and enjoy the pay.
 
Why are you keep bringing up salary? So if retail pharmacists make less then they would be treated better?

Do they make significantly more than you?
 
BMBiology said:
Why are you keep bringing up salary? So if retail pharmacists make less then they would be treated better?

Do they make significantly more than you?
Click to expand...

No, that's the point. You guys get treated the same as the minimum wage cashier yet you want to complain about stuff and expect sympathy from them? That's pathetic.

Some do, some don't.
 
You are comparing a high school educated cashier to a pharmacist?

If you don't mind me saying but you sound like you are one of those hospital pharmacists who think they are better than anybody else. However, you are being paid less and that hurts your ego.
 
BMBiology said:
You are comparing a high school educated cashier to a pharmacist?
Click to expand...

In terms of how a retail customer views them? Absolutely. There is no difference in how most retail customers look at them.
 
Is that why they want to speak with a cashier rather than a pharmacist when they have an OTC question?
 
BMBiology said:
Is that why they want to speak with a cashier rather than a pharmacist when they have an OTC question?
Click to expand...

No, that's why they snip and snap at you when you don't fill a script within 15 minutes like you said. That's why they yell at you when wait times go over an hour. But to address your silly little point, you would be surprised at how many cashiers get asked OTC questions.
 
BidingMyTime said:
If CVS continues this policy, the predictable end result will be the best technicians & cashiers will get jobs elsewhere. The ones remaining will be the ones who can't get jobs anywhere else, or who have no experience and will leave as soon as the get a minimum amount of experience, or who are just a few months from retirement & will grin and bear it until they can retire. Perhaps this is what CVS intends?
Click to expand...

Yeah CVS crossed that bridge a long time ago.
 
BMBiology said:
Is that why they want to speak with a cashier rather than a pharmacist when they have an OTC question?
Click to expand...

Nope that's because the Cashier is wearing a lab coat just like the pharmacist and every other employee in the store including the high school kid restocking the candy aisle.

Last time I picked up antibiotics and nebulizer meds for my kids I was counseled by the Cashier who was wearing a white lab coat complete with a name tag that had his name and Cashier written on it in pencil. By counsel I mean he read two lines off the patient information sheet punctuated by ummm, yeah, and okay. If I was Joe Blow pharmacy customer I would have assumed it was the pharmacist and assumed the pharmacist was an idiot.
 
I just worked today and can confirm this is 100% true. It is really humiliating. Also if anyone wants the dollar you have to give it to them. I lost 12 dollars today alone!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

P
CVS Walkout
2
Replies
73
Views
6K
knight on horse
knight on horse
P
Immunizing pharmacist CVS
Replies
0
Views
611
pharmdeep
P
Mhdfdleon
Termination at CVS
Replies
41
Views
3K
WorthlessOxygen
WorthlessOxygen
P
CVS Layoffs
Replies
5
Views
2K
RxPreceptor
RxPreceptor
Lexington2012
  • Locked
LA Times says CVS is causing drug errors because of understaffing.
Replies
31
Views
3K
owlegrad
owlegrad
Top