that this BLOG has been created.
It was intended for anyone impacted by the privatization of the Lab to express their opinions and expose the waste, wrongdoing and any kind of injustice against employees and taxpayers by LLNS/DOE/NNSA.
My co-authors tried their best to serve as impartially as we could and at the same time follow some basic rules.
I have seen more anger in this BLOG than anywhere else.
I would like to encourage contributors to steer away from repeated negative comments
regarding LLNS/NNSA/DOE and whoever else. I feel we have seen enough anger and insult.
The more negative we remain, the faster we sink!
Someone in upper management is reading this BLOG and cannot take us seriously if all we do is insult them (They know they screwed up, still do and dont want to hear it every day).
We stand a better chance of being heard by expressing our point of view as calm, collected and intelligent colleagues. not as angry people
They will listen to us.
It is time to shift gears upwards, it is now stuck in reverse.
While it was understandable to be angry during the transition, there is no excuse for not trying to make things better. We can still speak up and fight and call for action
if we are able to factually point things out and leave the past behind!
Opinions are welcome!
32 comments:
If you want to be heard by ulm, the only way is through a union.
UPTE LLNL SKILL CRAFTS
Yah... tell the nine people in RHWM that got mercilessly axed just before Christmas to be "calm and collected." You yourself may not be very calm this March, or whenever they come for your badge. Just sayin...
Good one....We've been rational and clear headed and maintained WFO funding the entire time through the transition. Not once have we heard from management. Most comments on the blog have asked reasonable questions and helped dismiss some of the rumors. Where was management?
Now we're suppose to believe your interested in listening to us?
Do the right thing and step aside.
"I have seen more anger in this BLOG than anywhere else."
Obviously you haven't seen the Los Alamos: The Rest of the Story. There's slightly more anger on this Blog, for good reason, you sent us Mikey and the prenup boys.
More anger on this blog than anywhere else? Go check out the LANL blog, and go see real venom. This is the land of pussy cats.
The FACT is that NNSA finally realized that they wrote the checks and the have taken the reins. DOE (and then NNSA) probably hated dealing with the UC's attitude of pushing back on what UC considered idiotic rules and regulations. With Bechtel running the show, NNSA gets compliance. They are happy. It did not cost THEM anything, the increased cost of the contract, insurance etc were taken out of the hides of those folks you don't see at the lab anymore.
I applaud the announcements of accomplishments made by George Chapline and Omar Hurricane. But I wonder if those gentlemen were to start their careers now with the style of operation this lab has assumed, would they be able to do the great work they have done under this regime? I have my sincere doubts.
From my little corner of the world I can't think of anything good that came from transition. Not even free bicycle helmets give me a warm fuzzy.
Shut the blog down if the people can't say what they feel. If these rules are enforced then the LLNL blog is no better then the Russian Provda which by the way only printed what the government told them to, same as the U.S.of A's ABC, CBS, NBC and MSN now days. IMHO this blogs been far to kind to ULM and the administration as it is. It's time to let the people say what they want and nail their butts to the wall, not cater to their desires. Silencing the troops is truly the first step to full government control. NOT now NOt ever !
Nice idea, but pointless.
ULM does not care what we think or they'd have responded to what is very obviously a hugely unhappy group of employees. Even outside the blog it's blatently obvious how upset the employees are.
As it stands now, the blog is not out of line on attitude. The moderators keep the language reasonable and the death threats out of postings.
"Someone in upper management is reading this BLOG and cannot take us seriously if all we do is insult them (They know they screwed up, still do and dont want to hear it every day)."
"We stand a better chance of being heard by expressing our point of view as calm, collected and intelligent colleagues. not as angry people."
"They will listen to us."
*
Oh, my God, where to begin? Have "they" listened one single bit during the last 2 years? No.
The sheeple-ization process at LLNL looks like it is well advanced based on this poster's message. This post reminds me of the infamous "Yes, Sir! May I have another" motto. And, yes, Mister "It's been over 2 years!"... you certainly may.
I begin to wonder if any of you actually work at the lab. I won't claim that morale is back to pre-contract transition levels but it isn't that bad anywhere I've been, and I know a fair number of people who work across most of the PD's.
I work at the lab because I believe in the mission; it really is that simple. So long as I make a living wage that is in range of what my peers outside the lab are making I'm more than happy. Government, big business, it's all the same in terms of the politics and incompetence. The difference with the lab is that the work I'm doing actually serves a useful purpose that isn't strictly profit driven.
Reasoned dissent is a good thing. Bitter whine fests on the other hand serve no purpose other than ego masturbation.
December 29, 2009 2:02 PM
There's been no death threats on this blog ever but I'll tell you there are a lot of people in very important placed who I could care less if they left in the horizonal or vertical position whereby after hearing about their demise I would simply sit down and have a good meal and a great night sleep knowing they were history.
I begin to wonder if any of you actually work at the lab. I won't claim that morale is back to pre-contract transition levels but it isn't that bad anywhere I've been, and I know a fair number of people who work across most of the PD's.
I work at the lab because I believe in the mission; it really is that simple. So long as I make a living wage that is in range of what my peers outside the lab are making I'm more than happy. Government, big business, it's all the same in terms of the politics and incompetence. The difference with the lab is that the work I'm doing actually serves a useful purpose that isn't strictly profit driven.
Reasoned dissent is a good thing. Bitter whine fests on the other hand serve no useful purpose.
While these two suggestions may not sound "positive" as the poster wishes, but ignoring the labs problems and thinking happy thoughts does not work. The first problem is the overhead. ULM has not dealt with this and it needs to be, otherwise we might as well quit WFO. There may be multiple ways to deal with this issue, but basically the huge overhead supports a managment staff that is too large for the number of people who do work. Second is the ULM needs to include the lab employees in the decision making process. This can be done in different ways, but whatever way it is done needs to be genuine and show that it is taken very seriously by ULM. At this point, it seems ULM holds the workers with disdain and contempt.
December 29, 2009 2:02 PM
LOL, you should move to Africa
Death threats? There have been no stinking death threats!
December 30, 2009 12:50 AM
I have made many suggestions on how to make the systems at the lab more efficient but none of them are taken for action. There first excuse is no money and their second excuse is, well it's worked that way for years so why not just keep being stupid and throw some warms bodies at it. We can burn those people out, toss them aside and get some more idiots in here to cater to our unreasonable demands. Typical everyday SOP for LLNL and especially NIF. For anyone who thinks LLNL has the latest and greatest systems in place or is efficeinet by any means, please do yourself a favor and go to for GM, Boeing, Ford or even Kmart. They'll walk the dog on this place a hundred times over.
Most scientists working at LLNL are very happy with the new LLNS management team and our Bechtel business partners. This blog distorts the image because it is the venue of a few highly vocal malcontents. The staff should rely on truthful sources for LLNL news like those on the LLNL and NNSA web sites and official lab memos.
Thank goodness for both LLNS and NNSA. They are leading this lab and the NWC on to greatness. Bravo! I can't wait to see Act II.
December 30, 2009 11:53 AM
You've been blinded by the BS put out by those whose job is to blow smoke up your crack as well as the congress and the senate. Possessing these SKA's makes most of ULM professional liars and IHMO if they're caught they should be thrown in prison for life without parole. Just where should we start cleaning the house? At the top of this upside down pyramid of useless overpaid mangers who couldn't find their way out of a wet paper bag without the blue collar workers to help them. Heck, if we got rid of 60% of ULM by sundown today we'd be saving the tax payers a lot money for decades to come. You sir, need to get your nose of ULM's butt and smell the roses. Everyone knows it takes special skills to make it to the top. You don't need to know anything you just have to be a butt sniffer or hob-knobbers and you're well on your way to the top of the bloodsuckers good old boys club. Lets face it, LLNL is finished as a national lab and they have no desire to work on quick fix alternative energy as the secretary of energy has asked, and therefore will have their funding cut every years from now on. For those of you who've bought into NIF or LIFE being the worlds saving clean power source, well, don't hold your breath. All of you reading this will be dead before she produces mega watts of useful electrical energy coming to your livng room. The government would be far better off spending the tax payers dollars building sun tracking solar arrays across the entire face of all the desert lands in the USA then spend another dime on promises.
2:02 PM sez...
LOL, you should move to Africa.
Why? Thanks to Rechtel's handywork we can experience life in a third-world nation just by going to the Lab.
To all the "Let's be happy' types out there. Concider easing up on the intake of lab-issue Kool-Aid.
The facts are, working at LLNL sucks, it's not going to get better, and violence will not solve the problem.
So stop the BS about improving the work environment or hoping to tough it out - it won't get any better ever. Get your heads out of the sand, write that letter of resignation, and get on with your lives.
6:37 AM "sez" : The facts are, working at LLNL sucks, it's not going to get better...
If it sucks for you, please feel free to state that. I hope you have found new work or will do so shortly. Good luck with that.
The Lab can get better and has a reasonable chance to do so. Getting better won't equate to returning to the past, that's gone.
Where is this top heavy management some of you keep mentioning? The area I'm in has four managers for around eighty people. Thats pushing twenty to one. The ratio was much lower prior to the contract change BTW. Also, the expectation is that those managers are spending a fair chunk of their time doing work rather than managing.
As for alternative energy, DOE has the non NNSA labs to do that work. Do you seriously think they are going to give LLNL anything more than a small supporting role?
There are a number of areas at LLNL that are doing very well in spite of having to carry the burden that is NIF on their backs.
Pretty much 90% of what gets posted here is at best misrepresentation and at worst utterly false. Things are no worse at LLNL than they are any place else these days.
Well, it looks like we have yet another argument between 2 or 3 people here. We also have someone stating things that are not quite true.
Fact: Things have gone further down hill with the privatization than they MAY have under UC - We can't blame LLNS for the piss poor economy.
FACT: The LLNS crew was indeed sent here to thin us out - the problem was they've never done such (LANL does not count) at a research facility.
FACT: LLNS is here to make money just like the rest of us. They are no different than GM, Ford, IBM, Intel and any other FOR PROFIT organization. Had the thinning of the herd happened during the housing market peak, there would be a lot less complaining.
FACT: There will be further reductions in force. Go look at the contract
FACT: We've lost very few managers compared to the number of people that were let go. In case you haven't noticed, there have been quite a few newly created positions so that LLNS can say that they've cut back. The job those people were doing has changed - their huge salary has not.
Face it - the economy is in the crapper and we are clinging to the edge so as not to end up in the septic system ourselves.
Am I worried? Hell yes! I need my job. Do I let it fester? No - there's nothing I can do about it except come into work every day, do a great job and maybe pray a little that my name never makes it to the layoff list. I'm spending my money wisely just in case I do need to be without income.
I have been laid off. It sucks. I had to move, had to contact my creditors to see if they would work with me until I got on my feet (They all did). I've not been in contact with anyone from that job - no one from where I used to live. I had to start over. Now with the present economy and the fact I'm older, if I have to start over, it will be much harder - at least I'll get free Health Care.
Agreed, not many of the now former managers got let go, they just got moved to technical or project management roles.
In regards to profit, yes, LLNS is a for profit entity. The lab however is not.
As for thinning the herd, that continues to happen through attrition. The work force demographics are such that a rapid and steady decline in population over the next five to ten years is a given due to death and retirement. The real worry is will the lab be able to recruit and retain a qualified work force over the next decade.
I've been laid off before as well. It was not enjoyable though honestly it was marginally more enjoyable than having to go through the big layoff at the lab even though I didn't get let go.
Bottom line, nothing is set in stone. The harder we work and the smarter we are the better the odds are that the lab will survive. And given the work we do that is a very important thing.
Neko stated: "FACT: There will be further reductions in force. Go look at the contract"
Could you please save us the time of going over the entire contract and tell us what section we can find the proof of this fact? I'd certainly appreciate it. Thanks in advance.
"The government would be far better off spending the tax payers dollars building sun tracking solar arrays across the entire face of all the desert lands in the USA then spend another dime on promises."-- this is a statement that should be passed to every congressman and senator we have. We need to spend the tax payers money on items that give instant results of it on short order that'll be beneficial to all. It's time to stop funding the dreams of the few who make promised they have no clue they'll ever be able to accomplish. Two highest priorities should be solar, wind, sea and geothermal energy and then terrorism.
January 2, 2010 12:17 PM
If you really cared, you'd really read the contract for yourself - alas some need hand holding.
From Contract No. DE-AC52-07NA27344
PART III - SECTION J
APPENDIX B
STATEMENT OF WORK
3.1.6.2 Closure of Site 300
If directed by NNSA, the contractor shall support the closure of Site 300.
3.1.6.3 Removal of Category I and II materials from LLNL
If directed by NNSA, the Contractor shall plan for and implement the elimination of Category I and II materials from LLNL consistent with the availability of repository sites, but no later than 2014, while preserving the materials skills for Category III and below.
3.1.6.4 Closure of Building 332
If directed by NNSA, the Contractor shall support the removal of Special Nuclear Material and closure of Building 332 Plutonium Facility in accordance with NNSA direction.
No matter how you slice it, it means less people.
January 2, 2010 12:17 PM, that language isn't new or surprising. The beauty of a matrix organization is that when programs and/or projects go away employees have an opportunity to find work elsewhere in the organization. That isn't a guarantee, but its more than most people get.
January 2, 2010 2:43 PM
So lets get the population down to 50% of what it is now and get on with it. There's nothing to be staying for except doing time. There will be no advancements and no slots to fill. They will all be contract employees. Easy to hire and easy to fire "at will" and on a timely fashion.
"Where is this top heavy management some of you keep mentioning? The area I'm in has four managers for around eighty people. Thats pushing twenty to one. The ratio was much lower prior to the contract change BTW. Also, the expectation is that those managers are spending a fair chunk of their time doing work rather than managing".
If there doing their own work chances are they are not needed as managers and do very little to help or build programs for the people they manage. They make almost twice those they manage and the real work is done by those that supervise things on a day to day level. I think you need one manager for 40 to 80 people depending on the project , along with several supervisors.
Along with these supervisors are multiple staff position and building managers etc that also drive up the cost.
I have found the blog helpful and it helps drive questions at management meeting as to what is a rumor and what's not. Reading the LLNL blog/web site does not address the same freedom of information.
Pretty much 90% of what gets posted here is at best misrepresentation and at worst utterly false. Things are no worse at LLNL than they are any place else these days.
January 1, 2010 9:33 PM
Yeah, take LANL for example. We are so much better off with Mike, Bret, and Charlie. Thanks Livermore we appreciate the great management team you sent to fix us. We are 100% better off than you guys at LLNL.
Where I'm at we have four managers to guard four Indians. Without these Indians the chiefs would die because they can't hunt or make fire.
Who is angry? I have never had it so good. The change to LLNS is enabling me to retire several years earlier than I had planned. Double dipping and high manager salaries make life pleasant.
You are part of very small minority, taking advantage of the system.
It is not because you are smarter than those who were laid off. It is because the system has holes.
Take the time to reflect on some of those 2000 people who were laid off and who still cannot find work.
In my opinion, your comment is so arrogant! and you are so selfish!
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