QLD DNA testing inquiry: ‘Toxic culture, emotional gaslighting’ claims as DNA inquiry gets heated

A senior scientist at the state’s troubled forensic DNA lab has told an inquiry she was subjected to “emotional gaslighting”.

A senior scientist at the State Government’s troubled forensic DNA lab has told an inquiry of a “toxic” culture where she was subjected to “emotional gaslighting” and where a manager referred to colleagues as “f***kers”.

Forensic Reporting Analysis Team manager Kylie Rika was giving evidence at the Commission of Inquiry into Forensic DNA Testing in Queensland on Friday.

Ms Rika said there was a “toxic culture at our lab” where staff were “too scared” to raise concerns “because they fear retribution”.

She bristled as she was grilled by barrister Matthew Hickey, representing senior managers Cathie Allen and Justin Howes, about her own management style at the lab, saying his questioning reflected the “emotional gaslighting” she had been subjected to by superiors.

“I refuse to take any more moments of feeling gaslit,” she told Mr Hickey after he suggested she had had to work on her own behaviour.

“That type of question to me just triggers me because it’s a gaslighting tactic and I’m not standing for it any more.”

Forensic Reporting Analysis Team manager Kylie Rika hit back at barrister Matthew Hickey during questioning. Picture David Clark

Ms Rika said a staff member had told her that senior manager Cathie Allen had reportedly described forensic reporting team members as “f***kers”.

“Based on other experiences that I had over the years, I wasn’t really surprised,” she said.

“Basically, what chance do we have … when she (Allen) referred to us as that.”

Mr Hickey suggested to Ms Rika that she enjoyed the fact that she had a greater rapport with her team than Ms Allen and another senior manager, Justin Howes.

“I actually feel very sad that my staff feel that they can only come to me,” she said.

The barrister also suggested that Ms Rika had a “big part” in the toxic culture in the lab.

“I don’t think that anything that I have done, said or implied has encouraged a toxic culture at all,” she said.

She said “world -renowned forensic experts” had validated her concerns about the lab and she had “tried my very best” to help fix problems at the lab.

“I have done my job … the best that I can,” she said.

Ms Rika also denied she had tried to cultivate a “negative view” of Ms Allen among her staff in an internal email, saying: “I don’t have power to manipulate their minds on what their own thoughts were, because they’re highly intelligent people.”

She said staff had told her that “you are the only manager who we can trust … you’re the only manager who seems to have both the brains and heart to enable honest issues to be aired”.

Ms Rika rejected a suggestion from Mr Hickey that the email she forwarded was “a deliberate act of passive aggression” towards Ms Allen.

Mr Hickey suggested the email was unlikely to improve the relationship with Ms Allen.

“My concern wasn’t about … trying to make my staff have an excellent relationship with Cathie Allen,” Ms Rika said.

“Cathie can do that for herself if she wants to. My job was to help my staff through difficult times.”