NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab laying off 5% of its workforce

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California is set to lay off approximately 325 employees, which constitutes about 5% of its workforce. This decision, announced on November 12, 2024, affects various sectors within the laboratory, including technical, business, and support areas. JPL officials described the layoffs as painful yet necessary to align with budget constraints while continuing their critical work for NASA. This follows a previous round of layoffs in February 2024, which resulted in the loss of 530 employees and 40 contractors, primarily due to funding reductions for the Mars Sample Return mission. JPL Director Laurie Leshin indicated that the current layoffs are not directly linked to recent political events and emphasized that the laboratory would maintain a stable workforce of around 5,500 employees post-layoffs. She expressed hope that no further layoffs would be necessary in the near future, although future budgets remain uncertain.

- JPL is laying off about 325 employees, or 5% of its workforce.

- The layoffs affect various sectors, including technical and support areas.

- This follows a previous layoff of 8% of the workforce earlier in 2024.

- The layoffs are attributed to budget constraints rather than political factors.

- JPL aims to stabilize its workforce at approximately 5,500 employees after the layoffs.