Federal scientists responsible for monitoring the health of West Coast fisheries are cleaning office bathrooms and reconsidering critical experiments after the Department of Commerce failed to renew their lab’s contracts for hazardous waste disposal, janitorial services, IT and building maintenance.
Trash is piling up at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, staffers told ProPublica. Ecologists, chemists and biologists at Montlake Laboratory, the center’s headquarters in Seattle, are taking turns hauling garbage to the dumpster and discussing whether they should create a sign-up sheet to scrub toilets.
The scientists — who conduct genetic sampling of endangered salmon to check the species’ stock status and survival — routinely work with chemicals that can burn skin, erupt into flames and cause cancer. At least one said they’d have to delay mission-critical research if hazardous waste removal isn’t restored.
If you think this is “efficient” and “saving you money” - think about how much a scientist with an advanced degree earns, versus cleaning staff.
Just insane.
I had a job recently where I was expected to clean the floors and bathroom when I was focused on billing and warehouse-receiving automation. “Stop making us money and be a compliant bitch” is absurd in any context.
That people on high have no concept of ROI is scarcely news; they just want control, outcomes be damned.
