COMP NEWS – To combat staffing shortages, Walgreens is offering a substantial $75,000 signing bonus to new pharmacists at select locations. This signing bonus is more than half the median salary for pharmacists in 2021.

Pharmacist jobs paid a median salary of $128,570 in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and that number is quite similar to the average salary for a Walgreens pharmacist, which, according to Glassdoor data, sits just north of $133,000.

Walgreens is hoping the signing bonus will entice prospective employees to apply for these jobs, which it has had a hard time filling.

“This is one of many steps to address pharmacy staffing in some areas,” a Walgreens spokesman is quoted as saying to Wall Street Journal.

Walgreens typically offers signing bonuses near $30,000 or as high as $50,000, according to the Journal, and those bonuses are usually paid out once a new employee has remained on the job for a certain period, generally a year or longer.

Additionally, Walgreens recently upped its dividend payout for employees. These measures, combined with recent job reports indicating falling unemployment, paint a positive picture for strengthening employee retention.

The news comes as the latest jobs report indicated that the labor market is still quite strong in the U.S. despite inflation and rising interest rates and fear of a looming recession — the U.S. added 528,000 jobs in July and unemployment fell to prepandemic levels.

The signing-bonus news for Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. WBA, -0.05% comes as the company recently upped its dividend payout and abandoned a plan to divest U.K.-based health and beauty retailer Boots and No7 Beauty Co.

To read more about Walgreens’ signing bonuses for pharmacists, click here.

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