Recently released statistics from the Medical Sciences Council shows fewer laboratory scientists working in medical laboratories today than New Zealand had over five years ago including a single loss of 5 per cent of this critical workforce in 2021-2022 alone.

'Practically, this means we have lost 5 per cent of our medical scientific workforce in the most demanding year this workforce has ever seen,” says Dr Deborah Powell, National Secretary of APEX, the union representing Medical Laboratory Workers.

Since January 2021, New Zealand's laboratory workforce has processed up to 30,000 Covid tests per day, in addition to 'business as usual” testing from both community and hospital patients.

'This has been a very stressful period for all the staff in medical laboratories in New Zealand. Given the average age of the scientific workforce is over 55, for many this has been a tipping point into retirement," says Dr Powell.

'Our newly graduated scientists have a number of career options open to them; we need to be providing conditions that attract and retain them in the medical laboratory field so we can replace those leaving”.

In the past 12 months, $300 million dollars has been spent on Covid testing, of which it appears little has been spent on the recruitment and retention of medical laboratory workers.

'This needs to change, with the priority being on our staff.” says Dr Powell.