Comments on: Are Pharmacist Salaries Going Down?

By: mr. EdB

mr. EdB — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:55:24 +0000

I can not understand why most pharmacists are surprised that the market for jobs is going down hill. Could they not see that the schools are flooding the market with many new graduates and the new roles for many of these pharmacists have not been established? As the market gets worse, the working environment for the pharmacist gets worse, as he becomes a cheaper commodity, and can be readily replaced. We have not yet begun to see how bad the market will slide down! The schools tell these kids a lot of nonsense about what they will be able to do, but they will soon see the sad reality that they are just cogs in the machinery.

By: jim martinek

jim martinek — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:44:00 +0000

I have noticed in Anchorage the demand for pharmacists has decreased slightly, but there are still unfilled positions in retail, hospital, and closed pharmacies. These tend o be at the lower end of the pay scale. The company I contract with in Anchorage is offering an unrealisticly low salary but making up for it by REDUCING benefits. They offer about $55 per hour with no weekend (their reason for lower salary), however when a dozen fresh eggs costs up to $7, organic potatos $3.50 a pound and to get fresh fruit and vegtables you have to import them weekly yourself from the lower 48 at a cost of $40 to $80, the offered salary with few other fringes isn’t very appealing .
There are still many unfilled jobs accross Alaska but they are mainly in outlying areas that offer ridiculously low salaries. $87,000 a year, (while living expenses: over $2000 a month rent, $100 a month for cable, milk at $9.50 a gallon etc) isn’t even a living wage.
Temp positions in these areas when they offer them, if you can handle the isolation and living conitions can be very lucrative however.

By: Phil

Phil — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:33:15 +0000

I am a 55 year old retail pharmacist in Alabama and I have experienced the nightmare of finding a pharmacist position in the job market we have in our state. My store’s pharmacy closed at the end of September 2009 and I have been working 2-4 days a month since that time. I have called every independent within an hour to 2 hour drive and also applied with all the chains to no avail. I am healthy, own my on home and have lived here for over 20 years. If you have any suggestions I would be happy to try them. If not I will probably go into another line of work and will miss being the warm, friendly, pharmacist that I am. If someone offered me almost any salary at this point I would gladly accept just to be working !