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Saturday, March 2, 2024
LLNS contract
The basic term of the LLNS contract No. DE-AC52-07NA27344, will end on September 30, 2026. What policies and practices should the NNSA (hopefully with employee input) preserve, review, or change for the next LLC contractor?
13 comments:
Anonymous
said...
1. Bring back the pension to encourage employee retention.
A critically important topic, but with the wealth of LLNS employee experiences available, no responses? Why would that be? Apprehensive LLNS employees? Surely Bechtel would fully embrace employee input yes? Not.
7:04 you’ve missed the point entirely. Bechtel doesn’t want or need employee retention. They only want fee. Older, wiser, more experienced employees don’t cater to Bechtel’s fee motive.
If we the “older and wiser” UC/LLNL and LLNS employees or retirees remain silent as we approach the 2026 contract change, then we are indeed catering to Bechtel. Along the way to the 2026 contract change, be cautious of the large population of low skilled and no skilled Bechtel bought off LLNS managers, they will sell you out in a heartbeat, and be proud to do so.
“Bring back the pension to encourage employee retention”
A reintroduction of a pension may encourage retention, but is unlikely to occur and likely moot, if Bechtel remains an LLC member in 2026.
LLNS spin and messaging won’t ever undo the irreversible damage LLNS did, under mostly Bechtel’s direction, when in 2008, they laid off hundreds of “career indefinite” FTEs so they could hire a bunch of inner circle pals into LLNS executive and management $$$ positions. The NNSA paid the LLNS legal fees associated with the subsequent class action employee lawsuit for years, as many of the elderly laid off LLNS employees passed away. Horrible.
Then in 2012, when NIF failed to reach ignition, LLNS dumped dozens of “career indefinite” FTEs into EIT status, even when most of them could have easily “bumped” subcontractor employees as was the norm prior to the UC/LLNL to LLNS management transition that occurred on October 1, 2007. This fake job security buffer is still advertised as a genuine job security perk/buffer during LLNS career indefinite FTE job interviews.
In 2026, we will be 2 steps removed, from the former UC/LLNL benefit package. Unless rigorously addressed, basically the Bechtel for-profit model is the NNSA reference point…
“Bechtelians are monsters. Just like the dinosaurs, they will likely rule for an extended period until an extinction event takes them out.”
Unfortunately, many long term and trusted UC/LLNL managers after October 2007, decided self-enrichment $$$ was far more important than UC/LLNL historical employment practices or policies, even though most of those policies were on paper, adopted by LLNS. I wouldn’t want to be in these LLNS managers shoes. Far too many LLNS employees and their families have suffered, some irreversibly, at the hands of LLNS and their LLNL home grown enablers. Very sad.
Besides the idea of bringing back the pension system to LLNL, not any other new LLNL contractor suggestions for 2026? Long gone are the days when UC/LLNL employees weren’t afraid to make constructive workplace suggestions. The silence from LLNS employees speaks volumes.
“A likely explanation for this silence: being fat, dumb and happy. Where is the mission?”
“Fat, dumb, and happy”? More like scared sh_tless, yet quietly hoping for a non-vengeful totalitarian free contractor in 2026. The “mission”? That is a distant 2nd to share holder profits at the moment.
“Fat, dumb, and happy”? More like scared sh_tless, yet quietly hoping for a non-vengeful totalitarian free contractor in 2026. The “mission”? That is a distant 2nd to share holder profits at the moment.
3/14/2024 7:30 PM
I think it is a combination of mid and latter career people being scared and not saying anything. The mobile people have left the rest are just trying to ride it out to the end so they are going be be silent. Some of course are managers who will not rock the boat. The younger people no longer care, I think really talented people are either steered away from LLNL or know to stay away. If you are bright hard working younger person who wants to have an impact there are so many more and better options that LLNL. The younger people we get are the ones that are in general not competitive on the academic or industry market. The only perk at LLNL now is that it is not a very intense working environment. Bureaucracy now eats up about half of everybody's time. It is not hard just boring. As for what is best mission that is simply not something anybody thinks about. Now before anyone gets on my case (1) These are general trends it does not there are not talented, hard working, and dedicated employees at all levels, however we have to be honest about the fact that there has been a real decline. (2) If you want anything to change you have to accepts some basic facts about what has been happening. (3) There is still a lot of chances to turn things around because in principle you can still do cutting edge and unique work at LLNL. (4) The political make up of the world right now is such that a well functioning and thriving LLNL is vital.
Some improvements would be to get rid of the for profit model, reduce bureaucracy, have more novel science, have some more appreciation of the workforce, have better managers, have more long term thinking and more feedback with congress where it goes both ways not just one way.
I believe part of the issue at LLNL is of course, that the high cost of housing here and the fact that many employees purchase a home using a mortgage, creates a sort of coercive situation where job loss becomes very painful to people's financial goals. Also it is making it hard to find good employees, as the pay is not competitive with silicon valley in many cases, making it hard to purchase property or pay off student loans.
In California of course, you need some angle on making money, getting stock options, purchasing a property that will appreciate, or an extremely high salary, outside consulting, things that are hard to do there.
For top scientists, it has trouble competing with universities where it is easier to establish a large research group and bring in funding, and lab salaries are not competitive with what top people make at good universities.
I am not sure Bechtel or any alleged or real mismanagement, compares with the objective economic facts of what Livermore has to offer. Maybe the best solution is to move some portions of the lab to allow work at remote sites outside of California, while keeping NIF and other large facilities here.
13 comments:
1. Bring back the pension to encourage employee retention.
A critically important topic, but with the wealth of LLNS employee experiences available, no responses? Why would that be? Apprehensive LLNS employees? Surely Bechtel would fully embrace employee input yes? Not.
7:04 you’ve missed the point entirely. Bechtel doesn’t want or need employee retention. They only want fee. Older, wiser, more experienced employees don’t cater to Bechtel’s fee motive.
7:53 why no employee input see 10:21
If we the “older and wiser” UC/LLNL and LLNS employees or retirees remain silent as we approach the 2026 contract change, then we are indeed catering to Bechtel. Along the way to the 2026 contract change, be cautious of the large population of low skilled and no skilled Bechtel bought off LLNS managers, they will sell you out in a heartbeat, and be proud to do so.
“Bring back the pension to encourage employee retention”
A reintroduction of a pension may encourage retention, but is unlikely to occur and likely moot, if Bechtel remains an LLC member in 2026.
LLNS spin and messaging won’t ever undo the irreversible damage LLNS did, under mostly Bechtel’s direction, when in 2008, they laid off hundreds of “career indefinite” FTEs so they could hire a bunch of inner circle pals into LLNS executive and management $$$ positions. The NNSA paid the LLNS legal fees associated with the subsequent class action employee lawsuit for years, as many of the elderly laid off LLNS employees passed away. Horrible.
Then in 2012, when NIF failed to reach ignition, LLNS dumped dozens of “career indefinite” FTEs into EIT status, even when most of them could have easily “bumped” subcontractor employees as was the norm prior to the UC/LLNL to LLNS management transition that occurred on October 1, 2007. This fake job security buffer is still advertised as a genuine job security perk/buffer during LLNS career indefinite FTE job interviews.
In 2026, we will be 2 steps removed, from the former UC/LLNL benefit package. Unless rigorously addressed, basically the Bechtel for-profit model is the NNSA reference point…
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/after-7-years-of-litigation-the-lawrence-livermore-lab-agrees-to-a-settlement-of-over-37-million-300154247.html
Bechtelians are monsters. Just like the dinosaurs, they will likely rule for an extended period until an extinction event takes them out.
“Bechtelians are monsters. Just like the dinosaurs, they will likely rule for an extended period until an extinction event takes them out.”
Unfortunately, many long term and trusted UC/LLNL managers after October 2007, decided self-enrichment $$$ was far more important than UC/LLNL historical employment practices or policies, even though most of those policies were on paper, adopted by LLNS. I wouldn’t want to be in these LLNS managers shoes. Far too many LLNS employees and their families have suffered, some irreversibly, at the hands of LLNS and their LLNL home grown enablers. Very sad.
Besides the idea of bringing back the pension system to LLNL, not any other new LLNL contractor suggestions for 2026? Long gone are the days when UC/LLNL employees weren’t afraid to make constructive workplace suggestions. The silence from LLNS employees speaks volumes.
A likely explanation for this silence: being fat, dumb and happy. Where is the mission?
“A likely explanation for this silence: being fat, dumb and happy. Where is the mission?”
“Fat, dumb, and happy”? More like scared sh_tless, yet quietly hoping for a non-vengeful totalitarian free contractor in 2026. The “mission”? That is a distant 2nd to share holder profits at the moment.
“Fat, dumb, and happy”? More like scared sh_tless, yet quietly hoping for a non-vengeful totalitarian free contractor in 2026. The “mission”? That is a distant 2nd to share holder profits at the moment.
3/14/2024 7:30 PM
I think it is a combination of mid and latter career people being scared and not saying anything. The mobile people have left the rest are just trying to ride it out to the end so they are going be be silent. Some of course are managers who will not rock the boat. The younger people no longer care, I think really talented people are either steered away from LLNL or know to stay away. If you are bright hard working younger person who wants to have an impact there are so many more and better options that LLNL. The younger people we get are the ones that are in general not competitive on the academic or industry market. The only perk at LLNL now is that it is not a very intense working environment. Bureaucracy now eats up about half of everybody's time. It is not hard just boring. As for what is best mission that is simply not something anybody thinks about. Now before anyone gets on my case (1) These are general trends it does not there are not talented, hard working, and dedicated employees at all levels, however we have to be honest about the fact that there has been a real decline. (2) If you want anything to change you have to accepts some basic facts about what has been happening. (3) There is still a lot of chances to turn things around because in principle you can still do cutting edge and unique work at LLNL. (4) The political make up of the world right now is such that a well functioning and thriving LLNL is vital.
Some improvements would be to get rid of the for profit model, reduce bureaucracy, have more novel science, have some more appreciation of the workforce, have better managers, have more long term thinking and more feedback with congress where it goes both ways not just one way.
I believe part of the issue at LLNL is of course, that the high cost of housing here and the fact that many employees purchase a home using a mortgage, creates a sort of coercive situation where job loss becomes very painful to people's financial goals. Also it is making it hard to find good employees, as the pay is not competitive with silicon valley in many cases, making it hard to purchase property or pay off student loans.
In California of course, you need some angle on making money, getting stock options, purchasing a property that will appreciate, or an extremely high salary, outside consulting, things that are hard to do there.
For top scientists, it has trouble competing with universities where it is easier to establish a large research group and bring in funding, and lab salaries are not competitive with what top people make at good universities.
I am not sure Bechtel or any alleged or real mismanagement, compares with the objective economic facts of what Livermore has to offer. Maybe the best solution is to move some portions of the lab to allow work at remote sites outside of California, while keeping NIF and other large facilities here.
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