Still going strong

[Anonymous]

I worked for Wyeth over 20 years and it was a great experience: I had very good managers , great products Zosyn, Effexor XR, Enbrel, Protonix to name a few but unfortunately i was downsized when Pfizer took over in 2009. Lucky for me i have been employed in Pharma since the beginning of 2010 and as i approach 60 years of age and i see the demise of our industry i look to leave the industry within the next year. I worked hard but was rewarded for 10 years i made over 100k/year ......i made great friends with reps within Wyeth and other Pharma companies ...and many doctors and their office staff i continue to stay in touch...We are no longer sales reps but informants under so many rules and regulations that it makes me sick..i know many honest hard working people that lost their jobs for going against guidelines that are impossible to follow....As Obamacare gets implemented it will just get harder and harder to do our jobs....Finally companies dont offer Pensions, stock options anymore and have cut down on 401k matching, Benefits and the size of bonuses ....the motivation to do more than you have to do is gone and if your boss is horrible or your territory is lousy just look for another job...LOYALTY from employers and employees is gone... When i talk to reps in their 30s in my company and tell them how things were they just shake there heads. The industry that has done more to improve the quality of life for Americans than almost any other is now on life support.....

 

[Anonymous]

Right on! The days of good times for all workers are sadly waning! I feel sorry for the younger generation. Hopefully the pendulum will swing back, and companies will have to reward their hard working employees in order to keep them. Now it is an employers paradise.......so many people need good jobs and those jobs are few. Good benefits and enticements are disappearing!

 

[Anonymous]

I remember having to explain to people what I did for a living. Usually multiple times until they got it. Big Pharma killed it themselves. Pfizer started the trend with "if 1 rep calling on an office generates 6 scripts then 15 reps calling on the same office will generate 15x6". Other companies followed them and it turned into a clusterF**k. Patients started hating us...we got on the government's radar and they started turning the screws...doctors no longer saw the value of us and started to treat reps like crap (or not see them at all!). You couldn't build a good relationship because the damn companies moved you around and didn't see the value of established relations. I am fortunate because I lasted over 30 years and got my pension. Unfortunately this job/career is going away. It really is a shame.
On a side note- what a shame the Frenchman (BP) bent over and sold out to Pfizer. If he would have held out like Essner instead of doing what the French do (surrender)-Wyeth would probably have bought Pfizer in a couple of years and all our friends would have kept their jobs. I survived....but most did not. Although-most landed on their feet in good places (thank God!). Many thanks to AHP/Wyeth-you are missed!!