R.Ph fired for legally carrying

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grayrock8@yahoo.com

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Anybody hear about a pharmacist for the pharmacy America trusts getting fired? He supposedly was involved in a robbery attempt somewhere up north- I guess his company doesn't trust him anymore.
 
That would be the one. I think I read in a different account how the same store had been robbed recently and the employees had asked for more security measures to be taken- and none had. As the saying goes- when seconds count the police are only minutes away. Hope it works out for him.
 
He'll be hard pressed to get his job back. Assuming an "at will" employment state, if he violated the rules for employees (many places, if not most, have a "no weapons" policy), he was terminated for doing exactly that. That it was to prevent a robbery is immaterial; he broke the rules.

Unless and until penalties are levied upon companies that choose to leave employees defenseless and then provide zero security, this isn't likely to change.
 
My Wife works for a major pharmacy chain. She sometimes opens her store at 0:dark30, and sometimes close at ten, or eleven at night. Then she'll take the days reciepts to the night drop at the bank. Her chain has a strict NO FIREARMS POLICY. And of course she follows company policy. Except when she carries. We both figure this... It's more likely that you will be forgiven, than you will be given permission. And she must be alive to get terminated.

I'd support this guy in any way I could. IMO he did what was right for his family and himself. His employer is way down on that list. Jobs come and go you only get one life.
 
In one of the stories I read, it said the store (Walgreens) is following OSHA policy in prohibiting guns.

Never quite heard of that one before, but I guess anything is possible.
 
Well I guess the cat is out of the bag about Walgreens. I guess the robbers in Michigan will know that Walgreens has established a system to get them in and out of the store with the money fast!
 
One of my family members is a pharmacist. One of his previous employers (a "big box store") had an "instant termination" policy for carrying a firearm on store property. And, the employee handbook threatened legal action, if the firearm was used on company property (even if preventing injury to employees or self). They claimed that store security (actually pretty good, and armed) was more than enough. ....But didn't escort anyone through the pitch black parking lot, to the distant employee parking area, in a bad part of town, after closing; even if they were making the night deposits at the bank (no armored car service in that area :().

After having to draw his weapon to stop a cashier from being harmed during a robbery, the store manager chose to "look the other way" on the no firearms policy. Some similar incidents around the country have gotten that company to change their policy to something more akin to "don't ask, don't tell; if you use it, we'll sue".
 
I used to work in Benton Harbor Michigan... I would never set foot in there without being armed.

That place makes Chicago look welcoming...
 
A lot of companies have a "total cooperation" policy when it comes to robberies.

Don't look them in the eyes. No sudden movements. Tell them what you are doing. "Yes sir, Mr Robber- may I carry these drugs out for you? Would you like all the money or just the paper? Have a nice day. Come back, now, y'hear?"
 
A lot of companies have a "total cooperation" policy when it comes to robberies.
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If you don't work for yourself (and can therefore make your own rules regarding firearms), then the best thing you can do is to hand the junk over. It isn't yours, it isn't your money. No point in engaging in violence over something that isn't yours. Drawing your own gun isn't a magic end to the robbery and can easily be what takes the robber's own threat and turn it into action on his part. Not a worthwhile gamble for something that isn't yours.

Still, for the companies to disarm employees and then not provide security is willfully disregarding the well being of those who work for you.


My wife is a pharmacist, and there's a reason she didn't go to Walgreens... they're pretty well known for treating employees poorly. They pay well, but starting pharmacists get the night shifts at the 24 hour pharmacies (which often end up in iffy neighborhoods). Better to work at some other store that closes at a decent hour.
 
You know its funny because I have seen plenty of video on TV where the employee doesnt do anything but comply with the thief and still gets murdered.....

Some people dont get it, crimes like this arent just about moeny they are at times about power and you can comply all the way to the grave, even if the store isnt yours..

For me so long as I am within the law Im going to do my best to prevent the BG from putting me in the grave or at the minimum take some bad guys as company... I find no honor in loosening bowels in some corner... No offense but thats how I see it..
 
Job or no job he has still got his life. He done what he though was right and in the end he done the right thing. There are more jobs out there.
 
I would venture a guess that any crook that robs a pharmacy is after one thing and one thing only: drugs, and perhaps any loose money lying around. But it is also a good guess that these are hopped up junkies that have no value to life. If we knew for sure that they would take the drugs/money and just leave, then let them have it. But hop heads are unpredictable and may just indiscriminately shoot someone for the kick of it.

In this particular instance, it is probably store policy for employees not to have guns because of the liability of collateral damage should a bystander/customer become shot or killed by a gunshot from the pharmacist will most likely open up a deep pocket for litigation and civil suits.

If I were the pharmacist, I would have done exactly what he had done. My job is not worth my life. I can always search out another job while my wife and family have a husband, father, and the ability to maintain the family unit. Isn't this the basis for why we all carry?
 
45Gunner has it exactly. It's a calculus between the liability of allowing employees to have firearms and the potential legal bills, and the cost of an employee.
 
Walgreens does in fact have a no firearms policy in store or in parking lot. Immediate termination is clearly stated.

Also, previous statements about "hand over whatever they want" is correct. That is the current policy at all the chains to my knowledge.

I have not worked in the retail setting for some time but this was one of the reasons I don't. It can be pretty lonely when you're the only one there at 0300 in "sporting" areas.

Like most policies I think these were devised by the insurance actuaries wherein the cost of whatever drugs (thousands) means little to a company of billions. Much cheaper than what harm an armed employee could do generating millions-magnitude lawsuits defending themselves.

It is an interesting situation, balancing the self-defense rights of the employee with company liability + a unique situation where people will acquire something they really want with force.

BTW, your average chain store doesn't have that much lying around to make robbery worth it.
 
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My grandfather used to call these places that were open 24 hours a "Stop and Rob."

I still have to agree the pharmacist did the right thing. I hope he has no problem getting another job.
 
FWIW, here's my take: If your job has a "no firearms" policy, the simple question that you have to ask yourself is this: "Would I rather be caught with it, or without it?"
 
I have not worked in the retail setting for some time but this was one of the reasons I don't. It can be pretty lonely when you're the only one there at 0300 in "sporting" areas.
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That's one of the pluses to being a pharmacist at a big box store (as in Walmart, Target, grocery stores, etc., not the neighborhood small convenience pharmacies). They're a harder target for robbery; not that they won't get robbed, but that you simply can't and won't get all the witnesses. If you shoot somebody (be it the pharmacist or a tech), there's a large number of other folks in the store who are potential witnesses that you cannot get. Furthermore, the pharmacy may be a bit of a hike from the door (not always, but sometimes)... that means there's no such thing as a quick getaway.

It forces a bit more introspection on the part of the criminal, and as always when dealing with criminals, the harder the nut you are to crack, the more likely they'll go find an easier mark.

I'm not saying that companies are right in this kind of policy, I'm just saying that there's more to this equation than just giving the pharmacist a weapon.
 
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