Laboratory Director discusses hiring and new agreement at community events

Thom Mason holds public town hall and takes part in Northern New Mexico Leadership Roundtable

By David Moore | December 20, 2021

Mason Town Hall Opt
The public town hall was broadcast from the Laboratory's Guadalupe St. building in Santa Fe.

Laboratory Director Thom Mason gave two updates to the community recently, discussing hiring and the increasing Laboratory budget, as well as announcing a new agreement with Northern New Mexico College.

At an online public town hall meeting on December 1, he gave a ‘LANL by the numbers’ overview including the following facts:

  • At the end of fiscal year 2021, the Laboratory had 13,512 employees, with an average salary of $123,000
  • In FY2021, the Lab spent $419M with New Mexico businesses
  • The Laboratory budget for 2022 is $4B
  • Currently 836 employees are veterans
  • The Laboratory is planning to hire up to 2,000 employees in FY2022

Mason also addressed the Lab’s ongoing scientific response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including computer modeling of the virus’ spread for the CDC.

Discussing infrastructure needs to support the Laboratory’s growing mission, he outlined how the Laboratory is upgrading and building new facilities on its campus, but also expanding its footprint beyond Los Alamos. The event was broadcast from the Laboratory's building on Guadalupe St. in Santa Fe.

The director also described the conversations that are ongoing between the Laboratory and community and business leaders around the housing and transportation issues faced both by Laboratory employees and others in the region.

He addressed 25 community questions in total, including why it was necessary to start a pit mission at the Lab, and what steps LANL is taking to meet zero-carbon emissions goals.

You can watch a recording of the event here

New Mentor/Protegé program

Mason also took part in the virtual Northern New Mexico Leadership Roundtable hosted by Northern New Mexico College Dec. 8, discussing community issues particularly relevant to Rio Arriba county.

At the event, he announced the new Mentor/Protegé program agreement between Northern New Mexico College and the Laboratory - the first of this kind ever signed by the Laboratory.

Under the five-year agreement the Laboratory will provide Northern assistance in a range of organizational areas, including marketing, business planning,  quality assurance, and risk management.