North Devon pharmacies chaos as staff ‘haven’t been paid for weeks’

Chaos continues for patients amid closures and lack of stock at Jhoots pharmacies in North Devon and across the country, plus it has emerged many staff at the troubled national chain have not been paid for weeks.

Following calls by North Devon MP Ian Roome for an urgent meeting with the CEO of Jhoots to discuss ongoing issues with patients being left without essential medications, the North Devon Gazette has been contacted by several angry and worried Jhoots staff from around the country.

They say they have not received their pay for July and have little hope of receiving their August pay this month, no stores have received stock for seven weeks due to supplier accounts being suspended and staff are expected to attend work and sit in empty stores with bare shelves, but are told they will be dismissed if they don’t turn up.

Staff allege there has been no communication from the West Midlands-based head office of Jhoots and all enquiries about pay are ignored.

Jhoots Pharmacy has branches across the UK and operates pharmacies North Devon in Barnstaple, Braunton, Ilfracombe and Combe Martin.

Above: The Jhoots Pharmacy next to Caen Medical Centre in Braunton.

Its branch in Holsworthy has been closed since May, after it was served an eviction notice over a rent dispute with the landlord.

The North Devon Gazette has put the concerns of staff in an email to Jhoots and has received no reply, nor to the follow up email sent yesterday (Monday, September 9).

"I am having to sit in a closed empty pharmacy as I have been told if I don't turn up for work I will be dismissed"

We have chosen to protect staff identities by keeping them anonymous and will not name branches they work at, but we have spoken to staff who work in Devon and those in other Jhoots branches across England.

One told us: “I work for Jhoots pharmacy and no one in my store has been paid, it is now four weeks late. I feel like this should brought to the attention of the public as well. I am having to sit in a closed empty pharmacy as I have been told if I don't turn up for work I will be dismissed for breach of contract even though I haven't been paid my July wages.

“We have not had a delivery in seven weeks and no sign of one coming, also little to no communication from head office on any matter, especially wages.”

Another said: “I’ve worked every shift that I have been scheduled for, but still I haven’t been paid. It’s left me struggling to pay my bills. We shouldn’t have to chase for wages we have already earned - it’s really stressful not knowing when or if the money we are owed will come and pay day is due again on 15th of this month.”

"we had to use our phone torch to go to the loo"

A former employee told how their contract of employment was ended with four days’ notice. They alleged they and a colleague had been forced to sit in an empty store without electricity for almost two months after it was disconnected due to Jhoots not paying the bill.

They said: “We had a lovely lady from the ICB (Integrated Care Board) to come and help us and try and sort out prescriptions for patients. As you can imagine it was very stressful for staff and patients.

“The electric finally was switched back on May 22 after two months of the staff and myself left in the cold and dark (we had to use our phone torch to go to the loo).

“We had no security, no help from Jhoots whatsoever, we were literally left in the dark! And in unsafe conditions. When the electricity came back on were hopeful that we would be up and running as a ‘normal’ pharmacy, but still to this day it is not open.”

Another person told us how their store had no pharmacist on duty since March of this year. They said no Jhoots stores had received stock for seven weeks and pharmacists around the country were owed ‘months of wages’. One member of staff had been dismissed for asking about pay.

Our source said: “The company does not care about patients’ medication or staff.”

"I got into pharmacy to help people, to give them medication and give them advice, NOT to deny their medication"

Oliver Chambers was happy to be named and said he had worked for Jhoots for two years and claimed it was ‘the worst business I have worked for’.

He said: “We all verbally get abused and bullied as staff to run the business under poor conditions, which is crazy. I have been dismissed recently due to sharing information to the public about what the company is doing and emailing colleagues from the company email.

“I have told the company about my ADHD and worsening of mental health due to the situation with pay and they do not even share an ounce of respect or respond towards the matter.

“I got into pharmacy to help people, to give them medication and give them advice, NOT to deny their medication.”

Issues with Jhoots spread far beyond North Devon – a quick online search will reveal news reports of similar issues at branches around the country.

North Devon’s issues have included a lack of stock at pharmacies and temporary closure of the Braunton branch, among others, plus not enough staffing cover.

Ilfracombe-based Combe Coastal Practice announced to patients on August 19 that due to ‘ongoing issues affecting Jhoots pharmacies in Ilfracombe and Combe Martin’ it would be temporarily uploading prescriptions to the ‘NHS spine’, which is a central database where any pharmacy can access patient prescriptions and dispense them.

The Gazette initially contacted NHS Devon about the closure of Holsworthy’s Jhoots branch at the end of July and it issued the following statement. NHS Devon said today (Tuesday, September 9) it had nothing new to add to the statement, but would check on the status of the Braunton and Combe Martin pharmacies.

The July statement said: “We understand that temporary pharmacy closures are frustrating for local residents, who can experience difficulty in accessing their prescriptions and we are grateful to the local community for their patience.

“We are aware of the impact of the ongoing closures and what this means for the local community, and will continue to work with Jhoots to address this.

“All temporary closures are managed in line with the Pharmacy Regulations and local policies.

“For patients looking to access a pharmacy, we recommend using the NHS ‘Find a pharmacy’ https://www.nhs.uk/ online search tool. By entering a postcode or town, patients can view nearby pharmacies along with their usual opening hours.

“Other pharmacies are available in the local area. Information on distance-selling pharmacies are also available on the website.”