At least five Lloyds Pharmacy outlets will be closed on Monday and Tuesday, with up to 30 further outlets affected, as a dispute with workers over working conditions and pay escalates, according to trade union Mandate.
The closed shops include Tonlegee and Coolock in Dublin 5, Killester in Dublin 3, Crumlin in Dublin 12 and Mullingar, Co Westmeath. An additional 30 shops – mainly in Dublin – are affected as official pickets are placed outside them.
Lloyds Pharmacy, which has about 960 employees across the Republic, has been hit by a series of strikes in recent months amid an ongoing industrial dispute with Mandate, which represents about 270 of the company’s workers.
The company unveiled a voluntary severance scheme last week, where departing staff are being offered five weeks gross weekly pay per year of service, with total payment capped at €100,000. The company has said that the package is open to all retail pharmacy and support office employees, with the exception of pharmacists.
Lloyds Pharmacy has said that the scheme is a “once-off measure to help support the long-term sustainability of the business and return it to success and growth”.
