Sandia News

HR, Communications & Health Services


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A group of volunteers plant vegetables at the Rio Grande Food Project in April. (Photo by Meagan Brace)

Community engagement and culture

Sandia donated $1.4 million to local nonprofits for education, family stability and community leadership. Employees gave more than $4.8 million to nonprofits through the United Way of Central New Mexico and raised more than $100,000 to support New Mexico wildfire recovery efforts. Employees also donated blood, holiday gifts, shoes, coats, books and school supplies. Additionally, Sandia established a new chief culture officer and office to demonstrate the Labs’ commitment to helping employees thrive. (3000)

Enhancing employee engagement

Based on feedback from the May 2021 employee engagement survey, Human Resources launched several efforts to enhance the employee experience: the Sandia Spark initiative to recharge the future from within; Sandia’s first weeklong Careerapalooza with more than 1,000 participants; a career development office that serves as a one-stop shop for resources and roadmaps to help employees achieve their goals; and Inclusion, Diversity, Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action learning and awareness sessions to increase employee resiliency and foster a more inclusive work environment. (3000)

Improving recruitment and retention

In response to the nationwide hot job market, Human Resources accelerated recruiting and focused on increasing retention. The Labs increased promotion opportunities, implemented several compensation program enhancements, provided new flexible benefit options and savings opportunities and increased the budget for University Education Programs by $3.3 million to expand the Critical Skills Recruiting Program. The program helps recruit and retain technical talent for critical mission areas. (3000)

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Lab News published a portrait series in response to the Rally Cry. The series featured staff and their contributions to national security.

Rally Cry support

Human Resources, Communications and Employee Health Services teams rapidly responded to support Sandia’s Rally Cry. Staff quickly created a website and process to collect volunteer resumes, filling many critical positions with internal candidates. The labs collected and managed more than 30 improvement ideas from employees, developed key messages and shared powerful, inspiring stories and visuals to increase Labswide awareness. They also created a new technical recruiter role and a mechanism to bring back retirees. (3000)

California Employee Health Services accreditation

California Employee Health Services renewed its accreditation with the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care. The renewal process takes place every three years and requires an extensive site survey at the outpatient medical clinic and passing a rigorous standards for safe, high-quality patient care. This collaborative effort with the New Mexico Employee Health Services team drew praise for robust wellness incentives, preventive health programs and outstanding behavioral health services at both sites. (3000, 8000)

Employee Health Services COVID-19 response

Sandia received the Secretary of Energy Honor Award for being the first national lab to implement COVID-19 testing capabilities for exposed and symptomatic employees and staff who needed volunteer testing for personal reasons, such as travel. While drive-up clinic testing ended in fall 2021, Employee Health Services continued to manage patient care and order tests for employees. Employee Health Services also rolled out serial testing to ensure unvaccinated employees could test before coming on-site. (3000)