Walgreens or CVS?

[pandsr9]

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I recently received job offers for pharmacist from CVS and Walgreens. It's a tough choice between the two. The pay between the two is comparable in So Cal. Any advice which one is better in terms of work flow, environment, benefits, computer system, etc?
Any advice or comments I would appreciate. Thanks!

 

[MountainPharmD]

Thats kind of like someone asking if you want poked in the left eye or right eye with a sharp stick. Neither option is good and they will both suck equally.....

 

[gjb19]

Thats kind of like someone asking if you want if you want poked in the left eye or right eye with a sharp stick. Neither option is good and they will both suck equally.....

👍

 

[ZpackSux]

Thats kind of like someone asking if you want if you want poked in the left eye or right eye with a sharp stick. Neither option is good and they will both suck equally.....

That's pretty good...

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Whichever gives you the most time off. From what I've gathered, it becomes more valuable than gold.

 

[Gizmo]

I spoke with a P3 today who has worked at both CVS and Walgreens, and he said that he thinks the computer system at Walgreens is "far superior to that of CVS."

Also, a district manager for Walgreens came to talk to my class a few weeks ago. He said that Walgreens is currently trying a new program in which rejected insurance claims are automatically sent to a dedicated workcenter that will deal with and fix the rejected claim (wrong group number, wrong dob, etc...) and send it back to the pharmacy (fixed) within an average of 15 seconds. I didn't ask for specifics, but this is what one of the district managers in the Charlotte area (NC) said. That sounds pretty cool to me.

Good luck in your decision! I am starting my intern position at CVS next week, but only because I have worked for them before and know their system, and CVS offers 20%-30% employee discount vs 15% at Walgreens (hey, I'm a poor grad student, what can I say).

 

[VanduchiPharmD]

I spoke with a P3 today who has worked at both CVS and Walgreens, and he said that he thinks the computer system at Walgreens is "far superior to that of CVS."

Also, a district manager for Walgreens came to talk to my class a few weeks ago. He said that Walgreens is currently trying a new program in which rejected insurance claims are automatically sent to a dedicated workcenter that will deal with and fix the rejected claim (wrong group number, wrong dob, etc...) and send it back to the pharmacy (fixed) within an average of 15 seconds. I didn't ask for specifics, but this is what one of the district managers in the Charlotte area (NC) said. That sounds pretty cool to me.

#1. The computer system does not make the pharmacy, I went to work for Rite Aid that has a very advanced computer system, and it SUCKED, I now work for Target who has a very old and simple computer system, and I feel it is more efficient and easier to use than any system I have ever used!

#2. I am sure that program that Walgreens is working on is all fine and well, but just think about the beginning of the year when 3/4 of the scripts you fill reject because of insurance issues. Many times it is not something as simple wrong group number etc. Usually those issues are fixed in less than 15 seconds by the tech anyway, the ones that take time are the refill too soons that you need to talk to the patient: change in directions? Are you taking too much? Did you change insurances, if the insurance is thru a different carrier, there is nothing a rejected claim center can do. You need the new card. Or you need a new Rx or you need to override the dosage; and frankly that has to come from the pharmacist because that is my name that goes with that rejection, there is not going to be some highschool kid in bangladesh overriding my claims.

So this amazing system may sound good, but I doubt that will actually happen, it is just a ploy to tell you how good something sounds, and it will not be seen for 10 years and everyone will forget about it like most "wonderful new advancements"

 

[dgroulx]

For the difference would be time on my feet. CVS has 12 hour days and Walgreens 8 hour days. I get fatigued after long hours and make mistakes. I prefer to keep mistakes to a minimum.

 

[Samoa]

Yeah but the flip side of 12 hour days is that you get more days off. Also, if you ever want to work just part time, 12 hour days are better: your day is going to be shot for any other activity anyway, so you might as well make as much money as possible.

Also I hear that Walgreens has some sort of quota regarding rxs/hr that you fill, which is a no-go in my book. Someone please correct me if thats not true.

Anyway, just my .02 as someone who enjoys doing other things besides pharmacy.

 

[All4MyDaughter]

Yeah but the flip side of 12 hour days is that you get more days off. Also, if you ever want to work just part time, 12 hour days are better: your day is going to be shot for any other activity anyway, so you might as well make as much money as possible.

Also I hear that Walgreens has some sort of quota regarding rxs/hr that you fill, which is a no-go in my book. Someone please correct me if thats not true.

Anyway, just my .02 as someone who enjoys doing other things besides pharmacy.

It's not exactly a quota of rx/hr, but rather a computer generated "promised time" that you have to fill rxs within. It's based on workflow and staffing patterns and I honestly do not know how it's calculated.

I actually like working for Walgreens but the timers on promised time and how quickly the phone is answered are pretty annoying.

Their computer system is pretty good. I found it a lot harder to learn than Krogers (the other place I've worked) but much more multi-functional.

 

[alwaystired]

Yeah but the flip side of 12 hour days is that you get more days off. Also, if you ever want to work just part time, 12 hour days are better: your day is going to be shot for any other activity anyway, so you might as well make as much money as possible.

Also I hear that Walgreens has some sort of quota regarding rxs/hr that you fill, which is a no-go in my book. Someone please correct me if thats not true.

Anyway, just my .02 as someone who enjoys doing other things besides pharmacy.

CVS has also taken on the wait time monitoring....so watch out wherever you go. They even monitor the % of extra value cards that you scan.

 

[crimson1566]

wal-mart also monitors the amount of time you take to complete rx's. You get a weekly report on how weel you did.

 

[sdn1977]

wal-mart also monitors the amount of time you take to complete rx's. You get a weekly report on how weel you did.

I could give a #*mn as long as I got it RIGHT! Let the corporations complain - I'm saving them money by not generating malpractice claims!!

 

[Caverject]

I could give a #*mn as long as I got it RIGHT! Let the corporations complain - I'm saving them money by not generating malpractice claims!!

you would give a damn if your bonus check depended on it

 

[Samoa]

I knew there was a reason I chose to work for Rite Aid.

 

[crimson1566]

you would give a damn if your bonus check depended on it

bonus checks make up only a small amount of your overall pay.

 

[All4MyDaughter]

bonus checks make up only a small amount of your overall pay.

I know of two pharmacy managers who each got $25,000 bonuses last year.

 

[MountainPharmD]

I know of two pharmacy managers who each got $25,000 bonuses last year.

That would be for managers at the highest volume stores, a small percentage of the overall. Most managers, especially for Wags will get in the 5k to 10k range. After working in a high volume Wags, a $25 grand bonus isn't even close to worth it.

 

[pandsr9]

I recently received job offers for pharmacist from CVS and Walgreens. It's a tough choice between the two. The pay between the two is comparable in So Cal. Any advice which one is better in terms of work flow, environment, benefits, computer system, etc?
Any advice or comments I would appreciate. Thanks!

Thx for all your responses. But I'm looking for your opinion on which offer to accept and why. I'm in deep hole right now and must accept one of the two offers by next week. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Maybe I'll take a survey of all your responses. Walgreens or CVS and why. Thx

 

[rxforlife2004]

I know of two pharmacy managers who each got $25,000 bonuses last year.

with all customers' complaints, inventory, managing staff, and working your butt off just for an extra 25K/year? Definitely not worth it. I rather get a full time at a store, and another part-time at somewhere else and get the same amount of money....but less responsibilities.

 

[rxforlife2004]

I know of two pharmacy managers who each got $25,000 bonuses last year.

with all customers' complaints, inventory, managing staff, and working your butt off just for an extra 25K/year? Definitely not worth it. I rather get a full time at a store, and another part-time at somewhere else and get the same amount of money....but less responsibilities.

 

[sdn1977]

Thx for all your responses. But I'm looking for your opinion on which offer to accept and why. I'm in deep hole right now and must accept one of the two offers by next week. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Maybe I'll take a survey of all your responses. Walgreens or CVS and why. Thx

So...you need to get &/or give more specifics. Your in S CA - so are you a pharmacist? Are these both union jobs? What is the rx volume? Are you in one location or will you float? If one location, are they in the same city or area? In S CA you can go 2 blocks & go from a nice/safe area to an urban slum. If one location, again, what is the rx volume & what is your ancillary help like (#s, how long they've worked there, hours of coverage). If you are to float - how large of an area do you float? Will you be the second pharmacist (to the manager) or third, etc....if so..ask how involved the store management is in pharmacy business. In CA it should be slim to none.

Things like workflow are dependent on volume & ancillary help. Things like computers can be learned & adapted to. Things like how long people have been there will tell you how happy they are. You can also go into neighboring stores & ask....we all know each other's dirty little secrets. I'm not sure we'd divulge them to someone, but you might get a "feel" for the poor locations with the high turnover.

It really doesn't matter what CVS is like in Pennsylvania or Walgreens is like in Indiana. So much depends on what your local area is like. There is a Walgreens here which is a "mill" and one 5 miles away which is a delight - according to the pharmacists who work there. Know that CVS is fairly new to CA...so they don't have much of a track record as a CA employer.

Oh...and I'd really advise NOT taking a job for the bonus. You may be rewarded & you may not.....it is not always dependent on how good a job you do. If you get one, great - I have, but considered it more like profit sharing. I've never been a better nor worse pharmacist because of a bonus.

Good luck!

 

[All4MyDaughter]

That would be for managers at the highest volume stores, a small percentage of the overall. Most managers, especially for Wags will get in the 5k to 10k range. After working in a high volume Wags, a $25 grand bonus isn't even close to worth it.

Well, my point was that the bonus CAN potentially represent a fairly large percentage of your salary. A 25% bonus is fairly decent, if you can get it. I haven't seen recent figures showing average or median bonus amounts for Walgreens in our area. The two who made $25K bonuses are outliers for sure.

I know you might not believe it but some people actually do like working for Walgreens. As with any workplace, there are people who like it, people who just do their time and people who actively hate it.

I don't know one of the above managers at all, but I know the other fairly well and he is very happy with his job. His store runs like clockwork and he is good at what he does. Whether something is "even close to worth it" or not is a call that everyone has to make on their own.

 

[All4MyDaughter]

It really doesn't matter what CVS is like in Pennsylvania or Walgreens is like in Indiana. So much depends on what your local area is like. There is a Walgreens here which is a "mill" and one 5 miles away which is a delight - according to the pharmacists who work there. Know that CVS is fairly new to CA...so they don't have much of a track record as a CA employer.

Exactly. It all depends on the area, on the store, on the people working there. There is no way to generalize across chains. I really like both of the Walgreens stores I work at, and they are very different. Night and day, really. Some of my fellow interns can't stand their stores, for various reasons. I worked at a Kroger that was great and one that was awful. Does that say anything about Kroger in general? Not really. It was all personality driven. I think your advice is spot on.

 

[All4MyDaughter]

with all customers' complaints, inventory, managing staff, and working your butt off just for an extra 25K/year? Definitely not worth it. I rather get a full time at a store, and another part-time at somewhere else and get the same amount of money....but less responsibilities.

There are plenty of people who feel the same way. It takes the right personality to want to be pharmacy manager/PIC and have your name on everything... but some people love the management part.

Oh, and the total compenstion for a manager in a high-performing store like that would be closer to $135 - $140,000. Base salary of around $112,000 +/- a few thousand plus $25,000 bonus. If you can tolerate the management junk it might very well be worth it.

People are motivated by different things.

 

[Delphi80]

I would also look into the benefits. From what I know Walgreen's profit sharing by far the best in the industry. If you plan on working there for many years to come, it's definitely something to look for. Something like they put 3 dollars to your dollar that you put in. I'm just an intern so I don't pay attention to that stuff yet, but it is what I've heard...

 

[rxblitzrx]

I think CVS is a better company.

In the long run they will be larger than Walgreens and their setup is better. Walgreens felt like a dungeon. Just my opinion.

 

[kkelloww]

Well, I don't know which company is better to work for. I've never worked for CVS only Wags and it sucks hardcore. But in terms of the company finances, Wags blows CVS away. CVS is $6.5B in debt with only about $400M in cash. Wags has no debt and $1.5B in cash.

 

[loo]

Ditto what the previous poster said. I've worked for both and like Walgreen's a lot more than CVS. Salary, benefits, computer system, and management at Walgreens is far superior to those at CVS.

 

[ZpackSux]

Ford or Chevy?

In my book, they both suck...

 

[pion]

I asked this question to a pharmacist at my store (Wags) and she said she wouldn't want to work anywhere else due to the much better computer system and the profit-sharing. But like previous posters said, it's equally important to think about the individual stores' characteristics regardless of which corporation they're a part of.