Mare Moscoviense, The Moon - Construction teams on the moon have been engaging in a work slowdown in protest of the reduced allocation of hazard pay to Lunar construction workers. This reduction was justified when use of quantum interference forcefield technologies allowed workers on the surface of the moon to work in a shirtsleeve environment without suits or breathing apparatus.

Lunar Workers Association Spokesperson John Kipping said "Listen, the management wants to portray us as greedy guys here, we're not. Just because we have this forcefield above us doesn't make the gravity stronger at all, digging and building on the moon is not like doing those things on earth. The forcefield isn't a panacea, I mean, we're taking some very real risks up here and we're spending months away from our families on earth."

"And if they die, so what? That's what implants are for. We don't mind paying wages for skilled labor, but hazard pay is a holdover from the pre-implant days.", said Moscoviense site director Jarod Pauling. In response Mr. Kipping invited Mr. Pauling to die a few times as he and all his men had and to "See how much he likes it."

Most of the LWA workers were brought up after the earth lunar teleportation link was established in 2184. Previously lunar construction was done using prefabricated environments brought onto the moon in sections. Lunar construction became more practical when the teleportation link made possible inexpensive delivery of building materials. The further adoption of QI force fields to enclose a bubble of air over a construction site made construction only a little harder than earthbound methods, with the notable exception of greater exposure to radiation that comes along with working on the surface sans suits. Many lunar construction workers preemptively terminate weekly to avoid the onset of painful radiation related sickness.

QI force fields were first created in an ABL corporate lab founded to explore potential, non-travel application of the teleportation technology and consists of a projection of a continuously operating teleportation field which retransmits incoming particles back on themselves. Mostly used in waste disposal on earth, forcefield technologies which have been designed for enclosing gasses have only recently been applied to lunar construction.

The advance has made possible the construction of a great number of buildings and the complex at Mare Moscoviense will be the first construction continuously under such a protective field. The complex will consist of living quarters, a biological research station and a power station to power a telescope based on forcefield technology. Scientists expect to be able observe stellar and interstellar objects with a greater clarity than ever seen before.