Actual post from Dec. 15 from one of the streams. This is a real topic. As far as promoting women and minorities even if their qualifications are not as good as the white male scientists, I am all for it. We need diversity at the lab and if that is what it takes, so be it. Quit your whining. Look around the lab, what do you see? White male geezers. How many African Americans do you see at the lab? Virtually none. LLNL is one of the MOST undiverse places you will see. Face it folks, LLNL is an institution of white male privilege and they don't want to give up their privileged positions. California, a state of majority Hispanics has the "crown jewel" LLNL nestled in the middle of it with very FEW Hispanics at all!
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III.2.3 Order of Layoff
The order of layoff for career employees in the same classification (defined as the four digits of the title code) within a unit is in inverse order of Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC seniority except that the department head may retain employees irrespective of seniority who possess special skills, knowledge, or abilities that are not possessed by other employees in the same classification with greater seniority, and that are necessary to perform the ongoing function of the department. All such exceptions are documented and reviewed by the Human Resources Manager.
This appears to be a general approval to use SKAs as the determining factor, not seniority. With this type of exception, management's ability to keep whomever they desire is limited only by their writing ability and imagination.
I think it makes sense to have that sort of flexibility. Most everyone on this blog claim they work at the Lab out of a sense of patriotism. I would argue the patriotic thing to do is step out of the way of the guy who has special skills and put aside your selfish, unpatriotic desire to keep your job. Just keep telling yourself "It's for the good of the country".