By City News Service
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said on Tuesday that it will lay off about 530 people as a cost-cutting measure that will also include the elimination of about 40 contractors.
“The impacts will occur across both technical and support areas of the lab,” according to a JPL statement. “These are painful but necessary adjustments that will enable us to adhere to our budget allocation while continuing our important work for NASA and our nation.”
The 530 layoffs represent about 8% of JPL’s total staffing.
JPL Director Laurie Leshin broke the news in a memo to workers on Tuesday, writing, “These cuts are among the most challenging that we have had to make even as we have sought to reduce our spending in recent months.”
Leshin noted that while the lab awaits word from Congress on funding for the much-publicized Mars Sample Return mission — an effort to retrieve soil and rock samples collected by a Mars rover and return them to Earth for study — officials were already under the gun to cut costs, leading to a hiring freeze, a reduction in some MSR mission contracts, budget cuts and elimination of some on-site contractors.
She noted that NASA previously told JPL to expect an MSR budget of $300 million, a 63% drop from the previous year.
“Unfortunately, those actions alone are not enough for us to make it through the remainder of the fiscal year,” Leshin wrote. “So in the absence of an appropriation, and as much as we wish we didn’t need to take this action, we must now move forward to protect against even deeper cuts later were we to wait.”
People being laid off are expected to be notified on Wednesday. Leshin instructed most employees to work from home on Wednesday so they can “be in a safe, comfortable environment on a stressful day.”
Those who are laid off will continue receiving their salary for 60 days, and those who are eligible will also be offered severance packages, transitional benefits including placement services “and other benefits resource information.”
“To our colleagues who will be leaving JPL, I want you to know how grateful I am for the exceptional contributions you have made to our mission and our community,” Leshin wrote. “Your talents leave a lasting mark on JPL. You will always be a part of our story and you have made a positive difference here.
“This is by far the hardest action I have had to take since becoming director of JPL, and I know I join all of you in wishing it was not necessary. We will always value our colleagues who are leaving the Laboratory and they will be missed as we go forward. For those continuing on JPL’s journey, we will come through this difficult time and keep moving ahead on our essential missions, research, and technology work for NASA and the nation.”
Rep. Judy Chu issued a statement saying she was “disappointed” at the layoff announcement.
“These cuts will devastate workers and Southern California in the short-term, and they hurt the long-term viability of not just our Mars Exploration Program but also many years of scientific discovery to come,” Chu said. “I’m not done, however, helping lead the fight with my California colleagues in Congress to reverse NASA’s premature and misguided budget cuts to the Mars Sample Return Mission. I’m hopeful in the coming weeks we can work to broker a deal with the administration and Congress to restore funding to the levels necessary to rehire workers and promote the kinds of scientific discovery JPL has been on the front lines of for decades.”
First published in the February 8 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
