Workers at the National Public Health Laboratory in Kingston staged a lengthy protest on Tuesday, accusing the Director of National Laboratory Services, Dr Marlene Tapper, of creating a hostile work environment.

Gathered in the lab’s parking area with placards, employees demonstrated from morning into the afternoon, claiming they felt victimised and uncomfortable on the job. The protest disrupted key services, including blood testing, as staff halted operations in what they described as necessary industrial action.

According to workers, tensions escalated after Dr Tapper reportedly issued a memorandum announcing plans to rotate approximately 30 staff members across different roles, including positions for which they said they lacked training or experience.

When contacted for a comment on Wednesday, Dr Tapper briefly responded, saying, “good morning and goodbye” before ending the call.

One employee, who requested anonymity, alleged that staff were intimidated by individuals aligned with the director. She also claimed there was a physical incident involving a staff member responsible for workplace safety.

“Earlier today was a clear example when the person who is supposed to be responsible for the safety of staff pushed people down because she was coming into the building,” the employee said.

Protesters are calling for Dr Tapper’s removal, arguing that her leadership has demoralised staff and created a stressful environment unsuitable for sensitive tasks such as infectious disease testing.

They further claimed that Dr Tapper was not authorised to be on-site at the time, citing an ongoing investigation into multiple complaints against her. According to their understanding, she was instructed to work remotely until the probe concludes, and her presence on Tuesday triggered the walkout.

Another employee described the ongoing harassment and said some workers are reluctant to report to work. She referenced a previous dispute that escalated to the Ministry of Labour, alleging that the matter was never properly resolved.

“Two years ago, she initiated a very big ‘bullyism’ towards one of our staff and we took a stand. The situation ended up going to the Ministry of Labour.

“It was the Ministry of Health that was supposed to deal with that and have it resolved and it was not dealt with. She continues to harass anybody she feels like. Everybody is being disregarded and she uses scare tactics against people to get them to do things that are not part of their work. She even wants us to report to doctors and that is not a part of our reporting structure,” the female employee told Observer Online.

Additional allegations include verbal abuse, with one worker claiming that staff members have been insulted and unfairly treated in professional evaluations.

“She called one staff damn dunce. She barricaded an officer in her office and styled him as dunce and told him that he did not know what he was doing. All of that was just because of a simple breakdown in communication,” a male employee shared.

Employees also raised concerns about working conditions, citing issues such as mould in the building and unsanitary conditions at the entrance.

“The environment is very toxic. The building was just painted. If you go to the entrance of the building a lot of birds will poop on you literally. We had to say we won’t take it no more for them to paint the building. There is mould inside the building and we had to decide that we were not going to work in it like that before they did some mould abatement exercise,” he claimed.

St Patrice Ennis, general secretary of the Union of Technical Administrative and Supervisory Personnel, which represents various categories of workers at the lab, confirmed that complaints date back to 2024.

“More than one staff member have been to the Ministry of Labour where a decision was taken that there should be a panel to deal with that. There are other staff members who have similar complaints, but it gets much worse. There have been complaints about the governance process, encroaching on the professionals’ job titles and so on. The complaints are many and have been logged and have been reported to the relevant authorities,” Ennis told the Observer.

He said a panel is expected to investigate and make recommendations.

“We have been talking with the Ministry of Health to see how we can come to some understanding and a way forward. Where we are now, the panel is supposed to investigate and also to make findings in terms of the complaints from members of staff.

“What we have agreed upon, as far as I understand, is that the director of laboratory services, Dr Tapper, should remain off the premises and not do anything to provoke the workers to cause what we are now having, this protest action. She should remain off the premises until the process is complete. She has presented herself here and that has caused provocation,” Ennis added.

St Patrice Ennis, general secretary of the Union of Technical Administrative and Supervisory Personnel, which represents various categories of workers at the National Public Health lab,