Just over two weeks ago, Mojave-based Virgin Galactic and sister firm Spaceship Co. laid off about 40 people, less than 5% of the workforce at those two companies, a company spokesperson said. Most of the affected employees were based in Mojave. The layoffs were first reported by New Mexico publication NMPolitics.net. The company said in a statement that the move was made “to position our organization for the drive to commercial operations following our successful recent spaceflight, and make room for new skill sets that we need to bring in over the course of this year.”

Source: Los Angeles Times January 31, 2019 14:03 UTC