Latest news with #VoyagerDeclaration
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
NASA losing nearly 4,000 employees to Trump administration's 'deferred resignation' program
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. NASA is about to lose a lot of people. Nearly 4,000 agency employees have chosen to accept the Trump administration's "deferred resignation" option, reducing the agency's workforce by more than 20%. Those numbers come courtesy of NASA News Chief Cheryl Warner, who shared them in an email to reporters on Friday evening (July 25). The deferred resignation program (DRP) — which places participants on paid administrative leave until an agreed-upon departure date — is part of the White House's effort to reduce spending across government. So far, NASA employees have had two chances to apply to the DRP. During the first phase, which featured a February application deadline, about 870 employees, or 4.8% of the workforce, said yes, according to Warner. About 3,000 — 16.4% of the agency's staff — did so during the second phase, whose deadline passed just before midnight EDT on Friday, she added. That latter number includes folks who opted in to two similar programs, the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program. The numbers could change a bit in the coming weeks, Warner stressed. For example, some people may withdraw their resignations, and others may have their applications rejected. NASA has lost about 500 people via normal attrition as well since Trump took office in January. Counting those losses, NASA's workforce will shrink to about 14,000 by Jan. 9, 2026, when the employees who said yes during the DRP's second phase will come off the rolls, Warner said in the statement. Based on those numbers, the DRP and related efforts will be responsible for a roughly 21% cut to NASA's workforce. Related Stories: — NASA workers plan 'Moon Day' protest on July 20 to oppose mass layoffs, budget cuts. 'This year has been an utter nightmare that has not stopped.' — Trump's 2026 budget would slash NASA funding by 24% and its workforce by nearly one third — Senators push back on Trump's proposal to cut NASA science funding by 47% The buyouts are part of a concerted White House effort to shrink NASA spending. For example, in his 2026 federal budget request, Trump proposed cutting the agency's overall funding by 24% and slashing the agency's science budget by nearly half. Such moves have sparked protests by scientists, engineers and regular folks who care about space science and exploration. For example, nearly 300 NASA scientists recently signed the "Voyager Declaration," warning that the budget cuts, if enacted, would have devastating effects on American science and could impact astronaut safety. Solve the daily Crossword
Gizmodo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Gizmodo
Nearly 4,000 NASA Employees Quit as Part of Trump Buyouts
More than 20% of NASA's civil workforce has elected to leave the agency since President Trump took office in January, the agency revealed on Friday, July 25. In the latest wave of resignations, thousands accepted deals through the Trump administration's deferred resignation program. In a statement emailed to SpaceNews on Friday, NASA said about 3,000 employees applied for buyouts through a second round of the program. Earlier this year, the first round saw 870 staffers leave the agency. The nearly 4,000 resignations could shrink NASA's civil servant workforce from about 18,000 to 14,000 personnel, including about 500 employees lost through normal attrition, according to CBS News. NASA noted that these figures are subject to change depending on the number of employees whose resignations are denied or who withdraw their buyout applications. Still, this latest blow to the agency's workforce deepens concerns about NASA's ability to uphold its mission and achieve key goals. 'Major programmatic shifts at NASA must be implemented strategically so that risks are managed carefully,' a July 21 statement signed by 363 scientists and current and former NASA employees reads. 'Instead, the last six months have seen rapid and wasteful changes which have undermined our mission and caused catastrophic impacts on NASA's workforce.' The document, titled 'The Voyager Declaration,' was addressed to newly appointed acting administrator Sean Duffy, a Trump loyalist who suddenly replaced Janet Petro on July 9. NASA employees submitted the declaration to Duffy on the 56th anniversary of the Moon landing. It argues that recent, haphazard changes to the agency threaten to 'waste public resources, compromise human safety, weaken national security, and undermine the core NASA mission.' Gizmodo reached out to NASA for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. In the Friday statement, NASA spokesperson Cheryl Warner told SpaceNews that safety 'remains a top priority' for the agency as it balances the need to become more streamlined and efficient with its pursuit of a 'Golden Era' of exploration and innovation. Contrary to sweeping staff cuts and proposed budget reductions, the Trump Administration has set high expectations for NASA, pressuring the agency to return to the Moon before China and ensure that the first human on Mars is an American. To achieve these ambitious goals, NASA will need its best people, programs, and funding, Keith Cowing, an astrobiologist and former NASA employee who now serves as editor of NASA Watch, told Gizmodo. 'We don't got none of that…And yet, somehow, we're going to go to Mars sooner,' Cowing said. NASA has not disclosed the demographics of the 3,000 newly departing employees, so it's unclear which offices or mission directorates will be hit hardest by this second exodus. Regardless, it marks a significant loss of expertise, with anecdotal observations suggesting many of the resigning employees are senior personnel, SpaceNews reports. On Friday, Duffy sent an agency-wide memo to NASA employees thanking those who opted to resign for their service. 'Your work has helped shape NASA's extraordinary legacy of discovery and innovation,' he wrote. 'Whether you are continuing the journey here or taking your next step beyond, your contributions will always be part of the foundation we build on.' Cowing argues that it will be difficult to build upon the agency's critically weakened foundation, and it won't be long before we see the consequences of gutting NASA and other core institutions of American science and technology. 'It will scare us when we realize what we've done, and we'll be clamoring to fix it,' he said. 'There wasn't a plan for taking it apart, and there certainly won't be a plan for putting it back together.'
India Today
4 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Nasa under attack: Mass layoffs, budget cuts hit American space dominance
As the American space agency prepares for the launch of four astronauts to the International Space Station as part of Crew-11 mission, Nasa is in the midst of an unprecedented scientists, engineers, and workers across the United States are protesting a sweeping wave of layoffs following dramatic budget cuts enacted under the Trump administration. Nearly 20% of the agency's workforce, estimated at 3,870 employees, are set to leave, dramatically shrinking Nasa from over 18,000 employees to around 14,000. Many agency veterans say morale has plummeted. (Photo: Reuters) advertisementSWEEPING CHANGES The departures come via the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), a buyout-style initiative introduced as part of a broader federal effort to create a 'leaner and more efficient' officials insist the agency remains committed to safety and exploration goals, including planned missions to the Moon and Mars, internal experts warn that the loss of institutional knowledge and talent poses grave risks to future protests broke out over the weekend, with hundreds of Nasa employees, contractors, their families, and supporters gathering outside iconic sites like the Smithsonian National Air and Space UNDER THREATRally organisers decried what they called 'preemptive compliance' with an unfinished budget, fearing the agency's storied legacy and scientific safety standards had been undermined before Congress had finalised funding agency veterans say morale has plummeted. The layoffs, implemented in two waves throughout 2025, have triggered a chain reaction of resignations and retirements, with workers expressing concerns that crucial 'brain drain' is happening too quickly for any meaningful succession planning.'We are here because Nasa is under attack,' one protest leader declared, warning that the erosion of experience and oversight could imperil future missions and even astronaut safety. The departures come via the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP). (Photo: Reuters) Adding to frustrations, nearly 300 Nasa scientists and engineers have co-signed the 'Voyager Declaration,' an open letter protesting the funding cuts and organisational declaration cautions that the rapid personnel losses and elimination of critical programs could bring about 'irreparable damage,' particularly to Nasa's ability to pursue climate research, advanced aeronautics, and deep space assurances from the agency's leadership that safety and innovation remain priorities, those on the front lines say the mass departures and persistent uncertainty have left Nasa 'demoralised' and at a continue to call on US Congress to act swiftly, warning that America's preeminence in space and science is at stake.- Ends
NHK
4 days ago
- Business
- NHK
More than 20% of NASA employees opt to leave agency: US media
US media outlets say nearly 4,000 employees have applied to leave the NASA space agency under a program by President Donald Trump's administration to cut federal spending. CBS News and other media have reported that 3,870 staff, or over 20 percent of NASA's workforce, have applied to leave. The agency employs about 18,000 people. The reports said the deadline for applications for the deferred resignation program was on Friday. The Trump administration says NASA will face a 24-percent year-on-year reduction in the budget for the fiscal year that begins in October. About 360 current and former employees of the agency published an open letter on Monday last week to voice their opposition to the spending cuts. The "Voyager Declaration" says, "The last six months have seen rapid and wasteful changes which have undermined our mission and caused catastrophic impacts on NASA's workforce."
Euronews
6 days ago
- Politics
- Euronews
US space agency NASA set to lose around 20 percent of its workforce
Around 20% of staff at the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration, known as NASA, are expected to leave the space agency, a NASA email statement said Friday. According to US media reports, approximately 14,000 people would remain at NASA after the departure of some 3,870 people, though reports said that may change in the days and weeks ahead. NASA employees who chose to leave accepted the Trump administration's "deferred resignation" (DRP) option, according to the space agency's news Chief Cheryl Warner. According to Warner, about 870 personnel applied to leave in the first round, and another 3,000 did so in the second before Friday's deadline. The 500 employees who were let go as a result of regular attrition in the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program were also included in the figure. 'Safety remains a top priority for our agency as we balance the need to become a more streamlined and more efficient organisation and work to ensure we remain fully capable of pursuing a Golden Era of exploration and innovation, including to the Moon and Mars,' a statement said. Going by the numbers, NASA's staff is expected to shrink to about 14,000 by January next year. On Monday, some 362 signatories of a letter that included scientists and former and present NASA staff members released a statement denouncing budget cuts, grant cancellations, and what they called a "culture of organisational silence" that could endanger the safety of astronauts. The letter titled "Voyager Declaration" was the latest in a series of statements criticising cuts and changes that have been proposed at other government agencies. In his 2026 federal budget proposal, Trump slashed NASA's science budget by almost half and reduced its overall funding by 24%.
