Dear Main Office,
I was touring the Vereserum facility in Lahaina when the catastrophe hit. Fresh out of college and looking for an internship, Vereserum was my first choice. I could hardly contain my excitement when I left for my interview. The future seemed wide open, little did I know that fortune and fate would choose my life path for me.
I’m proud of the way we all acted that day. While the world crumbled around us outside, we took in the sick and dying and took care of eachother. Even though most of us would never talk to our loved ones again we pulled together and made a plan for the future. The personal sacrifice and vision for the coming days was inspiring. I can’t speak highly enough of the work we’ve done over the subsequent 30 years. Even when I didn’t personally approve of every step, I understood the purpose of our work, but 30 years is a long time and things have changed. This past year has been a nightmare!
The problems started when people started showing up late. The idea of normal work hours flew out the window. My co-workers seemed to have little regard to schedules and some even had the audacity to take vacation days that they clearly didn’t have. Soon, even the dress code was ignored, with shorts becoming the norm instead of an end-of-the-week privilege. The unprofessional floodgates opened. Overnight I found myself in a hostile work environment. It has become so bad that I’ve lost track of the number of lewd or profane comments I’ve heard.
A group has appropriated lab equipment to build a number of stills and are producing a staggering amount of alcohol. Worse still, one of the group is the lab manager. They’ve knocked out the walls between labs A and B to create the most disgusting bar you can imagine. My protests have fallen on deaf ears and I fear that very little lab work is being done. The prurient grunts and muffled screams that come from the makeshift lounge on a daily basis lead me to believe that we are in dire need of more training videos about appropriate work conduct.
In addition, we have lost all focus on our most important project. As you know, we have been testing individuals who have been physically changed by the radiation after the accident. It was our hope that with the correct medication or medical interventions, we could use these individuals natural resistances to our advantage. Having a repair crew that could withstand poison gas leaks or 127 exposure was our goal. As our reports show, we’ve had good success. Unfortunately even that accomplishment is being squandered.
Fueled with the lab liquor, the staff has been pitting the two groups we’ve created against one another in contests and betting on the results. The amount of equipment that has been dismantled by these groups while being timed by staff is staggering. I clearly voiced my displeasure with these contests but again, was met with nothing but mockery and derision. This morning when I walked down to my office I discovered that my co-workers thought it would be funny to let a test group loose while I was asleep.
Almost all my equipment was dismantled, my experiments were ruined, and my desk was in 5 pieces. In addition, one of the test subjects had relieved himself in my trash can. This was the final insult! They seem to be under the impression that normal work attire and behavior are no longer the norm just because we haven’t heard from the main office in the past year. Right now they are all in the bar having a “Grievance” party after I informed them that I felt it necessary to officially report their actions. I still believe in our work and in the Vereserum code of conduct, but I refuse to believe in my co-workers. Please advise.
Trent Rowder
Lead Researcher
Vereserum Labs
