NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab to Lay Off 325 Workers Amid Funding Worries

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) workers gather near a propulsion component (L) for the Europa Clipper spacecraft as it is prepared inside a Spacecraft Assembly Facility clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., on April 11, 2023. Mario Tama/Getty Images

PASADENA, Calif.—NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena is expected to lay off about 325 workers Wednesday, affecting roughly 5 percent of its workforce, as it copes with continued concerns about its overall funding.

The cuts were announced Tuesday in a memo to the staff by JPL Director Laurie Leshin. She said the layoffs will occur on Wednesday, when all JPL employees were instructed to work from home.