The future of Los Alamos 2
For readers who are interested, I still have years worth of experience that can help people through the current difficulties. This experience seems to fall into a few categories.
- Helping people to find good jobs. I get requests from companies and headhunters all the time.
- Quantitative predictions of the future of the lab and the county.
- Financial skills that many scientists do not currently have.
- Simple, caring support.
This post got overrun by others. It is from 4 October and generated some comments. I moved it up the list by changing the nominal posting date.
posted by Eric at
8:53 AM
7 Comments:
Not all of us at the Lab are scientists. In fact, there are probably more of us "support"-type employees than any of the LANL--The Rest of the Story bloggers I've read can imagine. Who produces/prints your technical reports, papers, presentations, posters, etc? Ever think about it?
At the Lab, I'm "classified" as a technical illustrator. I've done a lot of graphics/document production-related tasks in my career. Unfortunately, I work for IRM-CAS--one of Doris Heim's struggling groups. I hear she's leaving in December; good riddance! In her wake, hundreds of LANL employees are suffering the results of her multi-million dollar deficit. If we haven't already been placed in "Workforce Mobility," we expect soon to be so. Whole weeks go by in which I and my 2 coworkers (there used to be 7 of us) have nothing to do--no work. I've never seen it like this. Everyone seems paralyzed and dumbfounded; I just feel pretty sad and defeated.
I've lived in LA for the past 22 years; I own a cheap little house here. I've only been a "Labbie" for the past 9 yrs. I've spent the best part of my 34-yr career in the corporate sector and I've never seen worse management than LANS.
Now, I'm faced with being fired, NOT being able to sell my home, NOT being able to find a job in this town (I want to stay), losing evereything I've built here, and having to start over who knows where at a somewhat physically handicapped age 57.
I have to say that if/when I'm out of here, it won't be easy. I'm not a scientist who's in great demand. I waffle weekly about being proactive and job hunting or just saying, "F*** them; make them fire me!" I understand that to them it's just business; to me, it's my whole life.
What can I do that will help you and your colleagues?
Thanks for telling me news about Doris.
Yes, I know that there are lots of people other than scientists.
Most of the folks that I have talked to over the last few years are not scientists.
Everyone is being treated without respect, just in different ways.
What job would you like?
I may know of some.
You can reply privately to my email if that would help.
Sorry, Eric; I haven't gotten back to your blog for a few days.
Thank you for the kind words and the recognition that LANL is a diverse community made up of many nonscientists as well as the science jocks.
You are right, IMO--we are all being treated without respect and appreciation. LANS and the other "powers that be" give what I consider to be lip service regarding caring. I would be most surprised and shocked if they showed any sign of caring. Realistically, business people are not in business to be nice to their employees (unless you're Google or Macintosh or the like); they're in it for the profit.
So, it's not surprising to me that when LANS is instructed by DOE and/or NNSA to cut operating costs they resort to the best-known method of appearing to cut costs, eliminating jobs. Unfortunately, what I've seen happen over and over again is that the actual worker bees are eliminated, not the redundant levels of management. This is what I expect to see happen here.
As for me, personally, I can't seem to rewrite my resume effectively. I have jobs skills in the areas of graphics/illustration, design (for printing, marketing, and display), word processing, production managment, and document production. I'm also an excellent profreader as well as a good writer and editor. I am trying to learn web design as fast as possible because I know it will expand my marketability. And, I'll be good at it!
As for my two coworkers, I'm afraid they're both in deep denial (I keep thinking of that Frank Zappa song in the 60s, "It Can't Happen Here.") One is a LANL "lifer" and the other came here right out of high school after working a few summers up here. Neither has had any higher education.
They simply can't imagine that they'll get terminated, even though I've heard each of them SAY they might. I can just tell that they don't believe it. It's the old Lab mentality about workers being unasailably secure and the Lab never-changing. Both individuals are talented but neither has ever written a resume, nor do they speak of generating one in light of the announcement by the Director.
My intention is to be ready. I need to rework my resume into at least 3 different documents, each stressing a skill set. And I need to learn that web design ASAP!
Ravenfriend,
I can help you to make your resume competitive. I tend not to rewrite it for you but to teach you quickly how to do it yourself.
I am doing such resume tuning for other LANL staff today.
As for denial, more than 90% of the Lab seems to be in denial. The reasons differ, but the denial is the same.
Whenever you or friends are ready, let me know.
OK, and thanks.
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