NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced on Monday, Oct. 13, it will be laying off 550 employees as part of its continued streamlining and restructuring plan, officials said. The layoffs are not related to the government shutdown, said JPL Director Dave Gallagher in a brief message on the website of the federal research and space agency located near Pasadena. Gallagher wrote on the website that the agency is undergoing a realignment of its workforce, including a reduction in staff.
First, its primary focus is investing in upskilling people, next it will "exiting people in a compressed timeline where reskilling is not a viable path for the skills it needs," and third it will identify areas to drive more operating efficiencies. Sweet said on the subsequent earnings call that Accenture expects savings of more than $1 billion from its business optimization program, which the company says will be invested into the business and its people.
That dream might be creeping out of reach for younger people trying to break into the industry, which looks to be on the cusp of a big shift as firms trim their ranks, double down on AI, and tighten performance standards across the career ladder, industry analysts told Business Insider. No one is exactly sure how it will play out, as much of the future will depend on where the economy goes and how quickly AI is adopted.