Overview
- Dozens of fixed‑term CNEA contracts were not renewed on June 30, prompting protests at atomic sites, police and gendarmerie involvement, and internal requests from managers to reinstate key staff.
- Two senior CNEA managers resigned and several gerencias filed notes seeking the return of 24 workers as multiple technical areas reported virtual paralysis after the staffing changes.
- The Academia Nacional de Ciencias, the Consejo Interuniversitario Nacional and university rectors have issued formal warnings that the moves amount to a 'vaciamiento' and could cause a large‑scale brain drain of young researchers.
- Public data cited by academy leaders show deep cuts to science budgets — roughly a 52% fall at CNEA and 40% at CONICET — and scientists say real wages have fallen about 40–45% since late 2023, worsening retention problems.
- The government rejects the vacancy charge, describes the changes as organizational modernization with more private participation, and has not resolved key questions on funding, CONICET openings or continuity of projects such as CAREM and RA‑10.