Washington, November 13: NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has announced the layoffs at its Jet Propulsion Lab with reduction of 5% of its workforce. The job cuts will affect mainly the employees working in technical and support roles. The latest round of NASA layoffs has been implemented amid strict concerns about the budget constraints. NASA's JPL had cut 530 employees and 40 contractors over the same reason this year. 

NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, or JPL, located in Southern California, implemented the second round of layoffs, according to an official post. The latest round will affect 325 employees, amounting to 5% of the division's staff. JPL, managed by the California Institute of Technology, is a federally funded research and development centre located in La Cañada Flintridge city. Stellantis Layoffs Continue: After Cutting 1,100 Roles in Ohio Jeep Plant, Global Automotive Manufacturer To Lay Off More 400 People in Detroit.

Jet Propulsion Lab looks after operations related to the robotics missions such as Curiosity Mars Rovers and Perseverance. On November 12, 2024, the division posted about the JPL layoffs with a notice titled "JPL Work Update". NASA's division said it came to a difficult decision to lay off some of its staff members after taking various measures to meet the current FY25 budget allocation. 

The NASA JPL layoffs would affect the staff from the technical, business, and support areas of the Laboratory. Jet Propulsion Lab said that despite being difficult, these steps would help it adhere to the budget and continue the important work for NASA and the United States. CNN Layoffs: American News Channel Likely To Fire Top Talents in Layoffs As Ratings Continue To Tank.

The official layoffs were announced by JPL Director Laurie Leshin to the employees. She said, "Despite this being incredibly difficult for our community, this number is lower than projected a few months ago thanks in part to the hard work of so many people across JPL," She said that the number of employees would be reduced by November 13, 2024. In the notice, she thanked the people for their contribution and said the lab would support their smoother transition.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 13, 2024 12:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).