A lingering problem with malfunctioning air conditioning units forced officials at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to leave their stations early Tuesday morning as technicians worked around the clock to fix the vexing issue.

The Journal was informed early yesterday morning that workers in the Thompson Boulevard headquarters were forced to leave their offices just after arriving to work at 9:00 a.m. yesterday morning.

Due to the broken down units, the employees had to sit outside to escape the uncomfortable working conditions.

The ministry released a statement soon after noting that all departments, divisions and sections of in that department had to be closed down.

Acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture Calvin Balfour said they are working as best as they can and trying to make the best of a bad situation.

“We were told that they (technicians) were going to work on it throughout the night and that it would be up and running this morning,” Mr. Balfour said. “Unfortunately, we’re still faced with that situation but the National Insurance Board (NIB) has assured us that they would have it up and running.”

When The Journal arrived at the Thompson Boulevard location, about 15 employees could be seen huddled in a group talking among themselves.

Three employees at the Ministry of Works were also seen at the headquarters.

Mr. Balfour said he consulted with the Ministry of Education Permanent Secretary Nicole Campbell and they decided that it would be best to implement a temporary shift system as repair works progressed so that workers would only have to endure short stints of discomfort.

“I’m thinking that we will implement a shift system where some people come early in the morning and they work until lunch and another groups comes in after lunch until the end of the day,” Mr. Balfour added.

He added that the ministry’s main concern is the staff’s health and safety.

Ministry officials hope to resume business as normal today.