Fermilab employees take buyouts; layoffs possible

Forty-four workers are taking incentives to quit Fermilab, as the Batavia-based center tries to trim costs as its main particle accelerator shuts down.

The laboratory had hoped to trim 100 workers when it announced the incentives earlier this year.

Fifty-six people applied. Applicants were notified of acceptance July 21 and 22.

“We still think we need to get to 100,” said Bruce Chrisman, director of operations support.

Within the next two weeks, the laboratory will decide on layoffs and submit a proposal to the Department of Energy, he said. Fermilab Research Alliance runs the laboratory for the DOE.

Of the 44 accepted, four or five are discovery scientists, Chrisman said. The rest are engineering, technical and administrative support workers. All but one are retirement-eligibile, he said.

The laboratory employees 1,912 people.

The Tevatron is due to shut down at the end of September, having lost its funding. It was the world's most powerful accelerator until 2008, when the Large Hadron Collider began operating in Europe.