Saturday, July 6, 2019
LANL Salaries Severely Fallen Behind Market
I noticed that the salaries being disclosed for engineering and science positions have really fallen far behind the market the past several years. First, most "scientist" positions are advertised at the postdoc, 1 or 2 level and require very advanced skills and experience nevertheless. On the other hand, there are glorified system administrator jobs being filled at the 3/4 level. Scientist jobs at the 3/4 level ask for incredible credentials that would be VP or director level in the private sector, and pay 2x to 10x. They are literally looking for world-class talent for $119-200K. Seems ludicrous.
According to Paysa, LANL is ranked 245th in pay for similar companies and 13,718th in all companies.
I understand how they can get some obsessive nanoscience or chemistry postdoc to work there, but how many top engineers or scientists are going to take a 2x or more pay cut and put up with the clearance requirements just to work on the government's niche problems? Not many good ones I imagine.
How can they fill these positions that ask for world class expertise paying so far below market? Also, why isn't pay keeping up with market under the GOCO model?
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22 comments:
Given Triad is a non-profit, has anyone requested the Triad employee salary list as provided by the past non-profit UC/LANL and UC/LLNL NNSA contractors?
"You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out" -Warren Buffet
Why does LANL need world class talent? These kind of people just complain and cause trouble. The state of New Mexico only cares hiring locals anyway. Why not just admit what LANL is really for and leave at that. After 15 to 17 years of decline why even pretend that LANL is world class.
In the mean time, LANL is paying clerical and operations staff 2x what the market would pay. Administrators making anywhere from $40k to above $100k.
LANS robbed the relatively meager piggy bank to ensure that their third rate management got first rate salaries and perks. What would you expect from a for-profit model?
7/07/2019 5:18 AM, I did notice that they are advertising positions for secretaries paying $60K to $90K, almost as much as scientists. If LANL has one thing now, it must be world class secretary talent. Jokes aside, they are unionized, so I'm sure that explains it.
By the way, I never said LANL needs world class science talent. They make the job postings, and that's what they all invariably require...for 0.5x market pay, of course.
Oh, but secretaries and system administrators can get compensated at or well above market. At least they have their priorities straight.
I"n the mean time, LANL is paying clerical and operations staff 2x what the market would pay. Administrators making anywhere from $40k to above $100k.
7/07/2019 5:18 AM"
I would add that there is not that much technical talent at LANL in the first place. We are now down to 19 percent of the workforce having a Ph.d. Sure 10% or more are also needed technical folks but that leaves something like 70% of the lab has support staff and they are what matter to New Mexico and they better dam well get paid 2x the pay or they will go to work at the other high paying jobs in New Mexico...ya right. There was huge explosion in management positions when LANS came in when the lab went from 30 divisions to 120 divisions, each with. LANL is unrecognizable from the place it was 20 years ago.
7/07/2019 4:20 PM
Mr. Bitter Anti-management, Anti-scientist LANL Ex-employee is back, with his signature "Ph.d" instead of "Ph.D." and "ya" instead of "yeah." Of course there is no need for top technical talent in the job of maintaining and certifying our nation's nuclear stockpile.
"Of course there is no need for top technical talent in the job of maintaining and certifying our nation's nuclear stockpile."
Your since is old, it has been certified long ago. I am not bitter, I have done very nicely thank you, but yes I have issues with arrogant scientists, LANL, abusive police, and the corrupt capitalistic systems the rewards weapons makers, tech gadgets, entertainment, and warmongers over artists, creativity, spirituality, and human dignity.
The Jiffy Lube for nuclear weapons doesn’t need PhD’s anymore. What it needs is a split in order for the reasearch entity to wither and die on the vine after it gets cut from the weapons program purse. The invasion of ex-Navy hacks has shown that we cannot do anything to make the place better or efficient. It is only getting worse.
Well, it is disconcerting that Research Technologists, with high school degrees, are making over 100K, while scientist/engineer 2's are anywhere from 100-125K)
Given Triad is a non-profit, has anyone requested the Triad employee salary list as provided by the past non-profit UC/LANL and UC/LLNL NNSA contractors?
UC revealed salaries, but not because they were a non-profit entity — which they were not. UC is an instrumentality if the State of California, and hence salaries are public domain information under the California Public Records Act. Non-profits have no obligation to release salaries beyond a few senior officials who are required to be disclosed in IRS form 990.
It’s hard to imagine the poster was present for the UC days if he/she was unaware that they were a state employee at the time...
Of course UC management of LANL was non-profit. Look it up.
7/13/2019 7:14 PM, I don’t need to look it up. I lived it. And I paid attention.
Is not difficult to figure out how much people makes. The last time salaries were published was in 2006, there still plenty of people working at LANL from that list. Just think, at 3 to 5% salary increase/year. I saw people in that list making back then above 100K at the scientist level, and they retired 1 or 2 years ago. Some others from the list are now division leaders making back then around 180K/year. Just imagine how much they make today. If you see a secretary making 60K+/year obviously is because the position was written, remember LANL is proud to advertise how generations of the same family have worked at LANL, what a joke...
7/16/2019 7:55 AM
You have vastly underestimated what top level scientists are making at LANL today. Not managers, scientists.
How have I vastly underestimated how much scientists are making? I am getting this information from LANL's own job advertisements and data from GlassDoor and Paysa. I'm sure there are directors and VPs making good bucks, but that is a small fraction of the total pool, and they aren't doing science at that pay grade anyway.
LANL doesn’t have “VPs.”
7/20/2019 5:47 PM
Triad's board has a "Vice Chair," Ronald Townsend, from Bechtel. Same difference.
Ron Townsend does not have a Bechtel background. AFIT, then ORAU, then Battelle. ORAU still has their “nice” conference room named after him.
Don’t make stupid stuff up to feed your hate and delusions.
Taken off the Triad web site is "made up"??? You don't believe what Triad is telling you?? Not my problem.
You might just want to go look at the Triad website before embarrassing yourself yet again. It clearly denotes Townsend as a Battelle person. Second entry under the Board, right after the (now-late) Ellen Tauscher.
I know it must be hard to keep two completely distinct entities like Battelle and Bechtel separate in a fevered mind, especially since they both start with a “B.”
I know it must be hard to keep two completely distinct entities like Battelle and Bechtel separate in a fevered mind, especially since they both start with a “B.”
7/25/2019 4:03 AM
And end with and "L"
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