Farmacias Ahumada Lays Off Over 20 Union Pharmacists Ahead of Collective Bargaining Negotiations

Original article: A 2 meses de la negociación colectiva: Farmacias Ahumada despide a más de 20 químicos farmacéuticos pertenecientes al Sindicato

On Thursday, September 10, and Friday, September 11, 2026, Farmacias Ahumada executed the layoffs of more than 20 pharmacists who are members of the Union of Professionals of Farmacias Ahumada (Sinprofasa), an organization set to begin collective bargaining with the company in early November.

For the union, these dismissals, occurring less than two months before negotiations begin, represent «a serious warning to workers and a form of intimidation against the union organization, which currently has more than 800 members and represents over 95% of the pharmacists in the chain.»

The president of Sinprofasa, Viviana Castañeda, criticized the company’s decision and cautioned that these incidents add to a series of labor conflicts the union claims to have faced in recent times.

«Since Farmacias Ahumada was acquired by Chilean investors, we have had to confront a number of anti-union measures, breaches of the collective contract, and other labor violations that have affected our members,» emphasized the union leader.

Castañeda noted that it is particularly concerning for layoffs to occur just as a new collective bargaining session approaches: «We are on the brink of starting an important collective negotiation process, and the company’s response is the arbitrary dismissal of our organization’s members.»

«This is a signal we consider unacceptable and cannot be viewed in isolation from the upcoming process we are about to begin,» stated the union representative.

The union announced that they will now, «take the necessary actions to defend the rights of their members and the exercise of union freedom,» affirming their commitment to face the upcoming collective bargaining process united.

We will continue to provide updates.