On Tuesday, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced for the second time this year that it would make another round of layoffs to meet NASA’s reduced budget spending.

The cuts will affect about 325 employees, or roughly 5% of its workforce, JPL said in a statement. The cuts were expected to occur in technical, business and support areas.

“These are painful but necessary adjustments that will enable us to stick to our budget while continuing our important work for NASA and our nation,” the statement said.

Employees affected by the latest layoffs will be notified on Wednesday.

In February, JPL announces plans It will lay off about 530 employees, or roughly 8% of its workforce, as NASA’s budget shrinks and Congress has no new spending plan for the new fiscal year.

Inside a note In a statement to employees posted on JPL’s website Tuesday, Director Laurie Leshin said that while a new round of layoffs “has been incredibly difficult for our community, this number is lower than anticipated several months ago, thanks in part to the hard work of many people at JPL.” he said. “

“The workforce assessment conducted as part of this process was both comprehensive and detailed, and while we can never have a perfect understanding of the future, I sincerely believe that we will move forward with a more stable workforce level after this action,” Leshin said. he said. added.

The layoffs in February were due to reduced federal spending. Mars Sample Return missionIts goal is to determine whether life exists on Mars by examining parts of the red planet.

Legislator’s response

In a statement emailed to LAist, Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park) said she was once again disappointed with the layoffs.

“Every layoff devastates uniquely talented workers and their loved ones and threatens future scientific discovery. Chu said NASA Science missions continue to solve some of the biggest questions humanity has, inspire the world and demonstrate America’s leadership in technology.

Chu, whose district also includes JPL and Caltech, said he hopes layoffs will end with more stable funding and added that he will work to ensure the funding is included in upcoming congressional spending bills.

This is a developing story and will be updated.