JPL Workforce Reductions

To: The Caltech Community
From: Thomas F. Rosenbaum, Sonja and William Davidow Presidential Chair and Professor of Physics

Today was a difficult day at Caltech, most acutely for our colleagues at JPL, where approximately 325 employees received layoff notifications. The workforce reduction realigns operations to meet reduced federal budget allocations. It stabilizes the size of the JPL workforce to meet future needs and intends to ensure that the Lab maintains critical expertise and capabilities to do so.

These reductions have not been easy. JPL leadership and HR professionals are working with each and every affected employee to make this transition as smooth as possible.

The contributions our colleagues have made to Caltech, to the advancement of science and engineering, and to the nation's leadership in space exploration will be carried forward. JPL's future is strong. The Lab is at the center of the nation's robotic space program, operating more than three dozen missions exploring Earth, the solar system, and beyond, and another 17 missions are in the pipeline, several of which will launch in 2025.

We appreciate all that you have done and continue to do as we push scientific and technological boundaries to advance discovery and benefit society.