Hundreds of workers to space out from NASA's JPL amid budget black hole
- Reference: 1707314415
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2024/02/07/nasa_jpl_layoffs/
- Source link:
Dr Garry Hunt, a former member of the team responsible for the hugely successful JPL Voyager program, described the [1]confirmation as a "blow," although not entirely unexpected considering the US political situation. Hunt also likened the climate to that of the 1980s, in which the Space Shuttle program was voraciously consuming resources and attention, often at the expense of other missions.
Employees will learn their fate today, February 7, and most have been directed to work from home during what management has described as a "stressful day."
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530 employees are set to be laid off, as well as approximately 40 from the contractor workforce. The layoffs will be spread over the technical and support areas of JPL.
[3]
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JPL management has laid the blame for the situation squarely at the door of politicians and the absence of an FY24 appropriation from Congress.
The laboratory was already in the process of making some difficult decisions concerning the future of the [5]Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission, having been directed to work to a budget of $300 million, a 63 percent decrease from FY 23 levels. However, further action has been deemed necessary to balance the books.
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JPL Director Laurie Leshin said: "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."
[7]Save the Mars Sample Return mission, plead Congresscritters
[8]Space exploitation vs space exploration: Humanity has much to learn from the Voyager probes
[9]Mars Helicopter Ingenuity will fly no more, but is still standing upright
[10]NASA lost contact with Mars helicopter Ingenuity, then managed to find it again
Hunt told us that JPL faced a double whammy as it prepared to lay off employees, having also had to deal with the early retirement of other experienced staff during the pandemic. The cuts, which appear driven more by political than technical issues, will also leave JPL in a weaker position when it comes to competition from other emerging space powers.
To deal with the shortfall, JPL had implemented a hiring freeze and let several contractors – including on-site contractors – go. This has not been enough to see the lab through to the end of the fiscal year at current budget levels so the ax is being swung today.
Representative Judy Chu, previously involved in the effort to reverse the MSR budget cuts, [11]said she was "extremely disappointed with the impending JPL layoffs."
Chu highlighted the impact of the cuts in the short term and on the long-term viability of scientific discovery. She said: "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 frontlines of for decades." Even if those cuts are reversed, and JPL can rehire workers – should they wish to be rehired – the effects of the cuts should not be underestimated.
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Leshin said: "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.
"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." ®
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[1] https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/jpl/jpl-workforce-update/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZcO3ORmsAApIVysfyA97tQAAAYo&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
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[5] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/02/save_the_mars_sample_return/
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZcO3ORmsAApIVysfyA97tQAAAYo&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/02/save_the_mars_sample_return/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/01/lessons_from_the_voyager_probes/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/26/mars_helicopter_ingenuity_grounded/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/22/mars_ingenuity_incident_esa_ice/
[11] https://chu.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-chu-reacts-jet-propulsion-laboratory-layoffs-announcement
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZcO3ORmsAApIVysfyA97tQAAAYo&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Adapt or die
Then it is puzzling how new technology and corresponding increase of productivity is not bringing cheaper everything.
One of the problems is late stage capitalism, where everything is owned by investment funds and competing businesses are bought and consolidated, so there is no incentive to actually compete and to make things cheaper.
Another problem is corruption and regulatory capture that remove any incentives for healthy markets.
For instance, you would think that by now the houses would be cheap as fish and chips. But since there is no competition and we have tight planning regulations, people can't start a business and build cheap, safe and fit for purpose homes. No. We have big corporations building low quality expensive housing mainly designed to be store of value for investors rather than place to live.
Re: Adapt or die
Those "tight planning regulations" have an effect too. Standards are higher than they used to be, and that costs money. I couldn't legally rebuild the house I live in now -- it's a fine house but was built 50 years ago, and it would violate numerous aspects of the building code if re-built as-is. Same with other things -- it would not be possible to manufacture the truck that I owned 20 years ago, because it wouldn't meet current safety standards. A 20-year-old phone would be laughably inadequate now. And so on -- we're paying more for many things, but we're getting more too.
Computers though... wow. Orders of magnitude performance increases, at lower prices. (Although I am typing this on a 15-year-old Lenovo W500.)
Re: Adapt or die
More powerful spreadsheets simply mean the models they are grinding get more complicated and more prone to error.
More powerful CPU's mean that cycles are thrown at spyware.
I think you get the idea...
Re: Adapt or die
NASA does not strike me as a place where lazy, incompetent people work.
JPL is getting budget cuts, but we are still dumping billions into SLS. It sounds about right!
Ah, Congress
The economy is booming, but Science is boring, so budget cuts !
(actually, there probably is no Science lobbying, so NASA gets hit first)
Adapt or die
They say deflation is bad. Then it is puzzling how new technology and corresponding increase of productivity is not bringing cheaper everything. The reason might be inflation causes demand for higher salaries, which are not possible to undo: workers protest. So instead companies are forced to fire people, or die. Example: mobile companies. Maybe they fire most productive ones or the internal environment becomes so toxic, the good ones leave.
This happens to whole countries. It all depends which group dominates. Socialists, left, labor unions, a capitalist monopoly, a political party, top company management, or a dictator over-exploiting its position and sucking all possible resources. It does not matter.
Lazy people is one of the reasons. Everyone gets old one day and starts to have enough. But they like their comfortable positions, have families and mortgages. I have been wondering how SpaceX has become so much more efficient than NASA. Or which factors enable the constant stream of UK overspending scandals with someone else' money.
Evolution and capitalism are best friends. Somebody must die. Always.