Quebec hospital pharmacists plead for ministerial action as 20% of positions sit empty

A pharmacy technician checks a prescription at a pharmacy in Midvale, Utah. (George Frey/Photographer: George Frey/Getty )

Talks to renew Quebec’s labour agreement for hospital pharmacists have stalled. The pharmacists are calling on Ministers Christian Dubé and France-Élaine Duranceau to intervene to break the deadlock in discussions that have stopped moving forward.

Amid a severe shortage of pharmacists in hospitals and long-term care homes (CHSLDs), the Quebec Association of Healthcare Facility Pharmacists (A.P.E.S.) says the current situation “can no longer continue.” The association says only the intervention of the Treasury Board president and the health minister can bring the ongoing negotiations to a swift conclusion.

The labour agreement for hospital pharmacists expired in March 2023.

A.P.E.S. hopes to settle the negotiations by Christmas, but does not believe that will be possible under the employer’s current negotiation mandates.

Three issues are critical for hospital pharmacists: attractive measures for young pharmacists completing their university training; competitive salaries; and conditions that help retain pharmacists nearing retirement.

These issues still haven’t been addressed at the bargaining table, says Linda Vaillant, pharmacist and executive director of A.P.E.S.

“Our impression at the table is that the team facing us doesn’t even have the mandate to discuss them. They have a very limited financial framework, and they repeat that constantly — more than once per meeting,” she said.

“It seems like this is not a priority for this government. We really feel like we are at the very bottom of the priority list and that unfortunately, given the limited financial framework, nothing will be resolved this time. We need to settle this now—our members are impatient to see progress on recruitment and retention,” Vaillant argued.

On Thursday, the association issued an urgent call for both ministers, Dubé and Duranceau, to step into the negotiations immediately.

“If they don’t give their negotiators the necessary mandates at the table, we won’t get there,” Vaillant reiterated.

A deepening shortage

The pharmacist shortage has been ongoing for 20 years, according to A.P.E.S., but the situation is now worse than ever.

Their staffing data show that 20 per cent of hospital pharmacist positions were unfilled as of April 1, 2025—379 positions across Quebec’s hospitals, CHSLDs, and seniors’ homes. In 2022, 18 per cent of positions were unfilled.

These figures reflect only current positions — not the real staffing needs created by growing demand, including population aging and rising chronic disease.

“Hospitals aren’t opening new positions even when new needs arise because they can’t fill the positions they already have. So today we’re facing a really significant shortage,” Vaillant said.

At the same time, new recruits are not coming in. A master’s degree is required to become a hospital pharmacist. But this year, only 70 of the 120 scholarships available for master’s studies were awarded.

A.P.E.S.’s key objective is to make the hospital pharmacist profession more attractive. Vaillant says pharmacy students are approached by the private sector from the first day of their training.

“Obviously, community pharmacies also need staff, so they try to recruit them right away. Meanwhile, we try to encourage these young people to pursue a second-cycle program — a continuous 16-month master’s degree required to work in hospitals,” she explained.

Attracting students to the master’s program is difficult, she says. First, students lose 16 months of salary. Second, they earn about 30 to 35 per cent less than their private-sector counterparts.

“They can go make something like $150,000 or more in the private sector. We, on the other hand, offer them continued studies. There is a $50,000 scholarship from the ministry, but when a young graduate is heavily recruited by the private sector and does the math… they think: ‘I’d rather earn $150,000 or $200,000 right away—an income that will last over time,’” Vaillant said.

A.P.E.S. is calling on decision-makers to implement solutions. The association says converting hospital pharmacy residents from scholarship recipients to salaried employees would make the career more appealing. Master’s students in pharmacy would then become hospital employees—similar to medical residents.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Nov. 27, 2025.

By Katrine Desautels, The Canadian Press

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