Former Operation Warp Speed chief fired by GSK over sexual harassment allegations

Moncef Slaoui, the former chief scientist for the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed, has been fired from the board of directors of Galvani Bioelectronics over “substantiated” allegations of sexual harassment, the company announced Wednesday.

Galvani is a partnership between the Google spinoff Verily and the drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

The termination comes after GSK received a letter containing “allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct towards an employee of GSK by Dr. Slaoui, which occurred several years ago when he was an employee of GSK,” the company said in a Wednesday statement.

“Upon receipt of the letter, the GSK Board immediately initiated an investigation with an experienced law firm to investigate the allegations. The investigation of Dr. Slaoui’s conduct substantiated the allegations and is ongoing,” it said.

GSK called Slaoui’s actions “wholly unacceptable. They represent an abuse of his leadership position, violate company policies, and are contrary to the strong values that define GSK’s culture.”

Slaoui departed GSK in 2017 after 30 years at the company. He was the head of GSK’s global vaccines business and before that, he was in charge of global research and development. 

He was hired for Operation Warp Speed in May, before resigning in January at the start of the Biden administration. At the time he was appointed, he was on the board of vaccine manufacturer Moderna, which he resigned from. 

Slaoui had come under fire from Democrats, who said that his former work in the pharmaceutical industry created a conflict of interest. He divested his shares of every company with ties to COVID-19 research except GSK. 

He could not immediately be reached for comment. 

In a letter to employees, GSK CEO Emma Walmsley said she first became aware of the allegations in February.

“We are in an age of progress with a female CEO, growing ranks of female leaders, new commitments to diverse representation, and a culture that values speaking up. I expect everyone to represent GSK with integrity — especially senior leaders,” Walmsley wrote. 

“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,” Walmsley continued.

She added that the company will rename its Slaoui Center for Vaccines Research in Rockville, Md.