May 13, 2008

How can I gauge my chance of being laid off?
Layoff Targets and Decision Process

One in a Series of SPSE-UPTE Layoff Bulletins
 
Just before the Memorial Day holiday, up to one out of five indefinite career employees who received a WARN Act letter in mid-April will be laid off.  This bulletin, one of a series from SPSE-UPTE on surviving the ISP (Involuntary Separation Program), provides guidance on estimating your own chance of being summarily escorted off-site on May 22 or May 23.  A seniority list for gaining perspective on ones relative seniority will be sent separately to SPSE-UPTE members.  The guidance is general for 200-series employees and more specific for employees in other series.
 
Layoff targets for the Principal Associate Directorates (PAD) show that more of those employees who belong to or directly support a program, rather than provide indirect support to a program through overhead accounts, will remain at LLNL after the layoffs.  At his All Hands Meeting, Director George Miller announced that ~200 (16%) of eligible career employees will be released from the Operations and Business Directorate, ~200 (7%) from the S&T (Science and Technology) Directorate, ~100 (11%) from the catch all business unit, the Directors Office, and ~35 (5%) from the eligible Program Directorates (WCI [Weapons and Complex Integration] and GS [Global Security]).  LLNS exempted ALL employees assigned to the NIF (National Ignition Facility) Directorate from involuntary layoffs at the time eligibility for the VSSOP (Voluntary Self-Selection Option Program) and ISP (Involuntary Separation Program) was determined, including those matrixed employees since returned to their home organizations.  Layoff targets for DOE work codes show that nearly 30% (about one in three) of those eligible will be laid off from positions classified by the DOE as a Manager, Executive, Supervisor, or Program/Project Manager Position (Code M000), or as a Professional Administrative and Related Occupation (Code P000), whereas 12% of eligible Scientists and Engineers (Codes S000 and E000 including both 200- and 300-series employees) and 21% of eligible Technicians (Code T000) will be laid off.
 
As noted in the previous message from Bruce Kelly, our President-Elect, entitled "Bait and Switch:  When Seniority Means Management's Choice," management appears to have divided our work force into many layoff units to lessen the role of seniority in determining who gets laid off.  Whether intended or not, management's repeated statements that layoffs of all but 200-series employees are determined by seniority conceals management’s role in deciding who gets laid off, especially for all employees who are not 200s.  Such misleading statements interfere with making management accountable to the work force, to NNSA and to the surrounding community for the results of the layoffs.  Consult the guidance to see how the new business units created for the ISP are really layoff units and how they function to minimize the impact of seniority in building the layoff lists.
 
Should you be involuntarily separated, we encourage you to notify SPSE-UPTE of the circumstances of your separation and to learn as much about the composition of your layoff unit as you can from whoever notifies you of your lay off.  Information on the composition of layoff units will allow us to assess compliance with internal LLNS and DOE policies and state and federal laws and where appropriate to initiate and support challenges, such as internal grievances and legal actions.  Look for more on challenging a layoff in a later article.
 
If you are a member of SPSE-UPTE, you will automatically be mailed a copy of both the detailed guidance and the employee seniority lists sorted by 4-digit job code, directorate and hire date.  If you are not a member, you may request both a seniority list and an SPSE-UPTE application from our office by e-mailing us at spse@spse.org or calling us at (925) 449-4846.  The seniority list is most useful for employees not in the 200 series.
 
SPSE-UPTE is committed to helping you plan your future, whether you remain at LLNL after the layoffs or move on to the next phase of your career.  Look for future bulletins in this series covering what SPSE-UPTE is doing for the skilled trades unit we represent, how to prepare for a layoff, how to contest a layoff, and life after the layoff both inside and outside of LLNL.
 
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
How to Unsubscribe
SPSE has had access to Lab-wide e-mail for some time and aims to make prudent
and responsible use of the method of communication. However, if you prefer to be
deleted from our list send us an email at spse@spse.org
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Society of Professionals, Scientists & Engineers
Local 11 University Professional and Technical Employees, CWA Local 9119
P.O. Box 1066, Livermore, CA 94551
(925) 449-4846 voice
(925) 449-4851 fax
Office Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8am to Noon
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Visit our web site at http://www.spse.org