"The consequences for NASAs long-term health are dire; NASA must reverse course in President Obamas first term or key intellectual capabilities will be lost and not replaced."
"Between 1993 and 2009, despite the fact that NASAs overall budget and responsibilities increased, NASA lost 6,787 civil-servant employees under the age of 40, who were never replaced (see purple oval for missing cohort). Without a course correction, the demographic distribution will become even more skewed with the proportion of NASA employees who are 50-59 increasing to nearly half the entire civil-service workforce by the 2014."
Editor's note: With an aging workforce not being replaced, an Obama administration that doesn't seem to think NASA is worth much attention these days, Constellation over budget and behind schedule, the news could hardly be worse.
"IFPTE urges the sub-committee to consider:
- Adopting legislation prohibiting NASA, or any other federal Agency, from using full-cost recovery of civil-servant salary in its budgetary accounting;
- Adopting legislation mandating that no more than 10% of new hires within any federal Agency in any fiscal year be hired into term positions and that no more than 5% of the total civil-service workforce at any federal Agency consist of term positions; and
- Calling for Appropriators to provide NASA, and Americas other critical federal laboratories, with increased funding for longer-term innovative R&D programs, including new funds to enable a vigorous strategic hiring program to recruit the best and the brightest new talent, in order to maintain Americas future leadership in aerospace, science, and technology R&D and inspire young Americans to pursue an education and then a career in STEM-related areas."