Former scientific head of Operation Warp speed fired by drugmaker GSK for sexual harassment
The former scientific head of Operation Warp Speed, Moncef Slaoui, was fired by GlaxoSmithKline after an internal investigation found that he sexually harassed a fellow employee several years ago.
As co-leader of Operation Warp Speed, the government’s vaccine effort during the Trump administration, he had helped speed the development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines. He remained as an adviser to the Biden administration for about a month, then resigned in February.
Slaoui had left his role at GSK in 2017 but served as chairman of the board for Galvani Bioelectronics, a joint venture between GSK and Verily Life Sciences.
GSK authorities received a letter in February, alleging that Slaoui acted inappropriately and sexually harassed a GSK employee several years ago.
The law firm hired by the company confirmed the allegations, according to GSK’s CEO Emma Walmsley, who wrote a letter Wednesday about the firing sent to all company employees.
“Dr. Slaoui’s behaviours represent an abuse of his leadership position and violate our company policies, our values, and our commitment to Trust – a commitment I know is shared by all of you,” she wrote.
“This simply should not have happened. On a personal level, I am shocked and angry about all of this, but I’m resolute. I want to be clear that sexual harassment is strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated. Abuse of leadership position, in any form, will not be tolerated.”
The company will be renaming its research and development facility in Rockville, Maryland, which had been called the Slaoui Center for Vaccines Research.
Slaoui, a native of Morocco, began a 30-year career at GSK in 1988, as a vaccine researcher. He was responsible for helping develop vaccines against malaria, cervical cancer, gastroenteritis in children and Ebola. He is a partner at Medicxi, a venture capital firm specializing in early-stage and late-stage life sciences investments, which was an investor in Centessa Pharmaceuticals.
