Aether Foundation Employee (Trainer class)

The contents of this article have been suggested to be merged into the page Aether Foundation (Trainer class). Please discuss it on the talk page for this article.

Aether Foundation Employee エーテル財団 職員 Aether Foundation Staff
Artwork from Sun and Moon
Other names
Introduced in	Generation VII
Appears in	Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon
Gender	Both
Counterpart	{{{counterpart}}}
Notable members	Jessie, James, and Meowth (anime, SM046 - SM049; SM096)
Anime debut	SM044|A Dream Encounter!
TCG debut	[[(TCG)|]]
TCG card	{{{card}}}
Manga debut	PASM11 (Adventures)

An Aether Foundation Employee (Japanese: エーテル財団 職員 Aether Foundation Staff) is a type of Pokémon Trainer introduced in Generation VII. They are employees of the Aether Foundation who are dressed in white, futuristic uniforms.

The player battles the Employees while raiding Aether Paradise in search of the kidnapped Lillie. During this sequence, the Employees act and look villainous when battled, acting similarly to the Grunts of villainous teams. In addition to the traditional male and female variants, the player will also battle masked scientist Employees in the Foundation's secret lab.

Outside the main plot, Aether Foundation Employees may be battled in the Battle Royal Dome and Battle Tree, each with distinct names and using the Aether Foundation Trainer class. These Employees are friendly and are truer to the ideals of the Foundation.

Most of the Employees keep their Pokémon in Great Balls, although scientist Employees use Repeat Balls instead.

Appearance

In-battle models from Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon

VS models from Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon

Overworld models from Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon

Trainer list

Pokémon Sun and Moon

Trainer name	Battle	Winnings	Pokémon
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.36	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀	Initial battle	$1,728	Lv.37	Lv.36	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.36	Lv.36	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀ *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,776	Lv.37	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,824	Lv.38	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,824	Lv.38	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,824	Lv.38	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------

Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon

Trainer name	Battle	Winnings	Pokémon
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,920	Lv.40	Lv.40	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀	Initial battle	$1,920	Lv.40	Lv.40	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀	Initial battle	$1,920	Lv.40	Lv.40	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,920	Lv.40	Lv.40	Lv.40	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂	Initial battle	$1,920	Lv.40	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♀ *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$1,968	Lv.41	-------	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$2,016	Lv.42	Lv.42	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$2,016	Lv.42	Lv.42	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$2,112	Lv.41	Lv.44	-------	-------	-------	-------
Aether Foundation Employee ♂ *	Initial battle	$2,928	Lv.61	Lv.61	Lv.61	-------	-------	-------

In the anime

Team Rocket as Aether Foundation Employees in the anime

An Aether Foundation Employee first appeared in A Dream Encounter!. Several other Employees appeared in Deceiving Appearances!, including a disguised Team Rocket, who had been personally hired by Faba to serve as his underlings. However, they resigned in Mission: Total Recall! upon discovering Faba's plans to erase Lillie's memories, with them declaring that even they wouldn't stoop so low.

Several Aether Foundation Employees appeared in SM096. They listened as Wicke made an announcement about a missing Stufful. Team Rocket were also seen in their Employee disguises, working under Wicke. They had planned to steal the Pokémon living in Aether Paradise's conservation area as an offering to Giovanni, but their covers were blown after they were caught with Stufful.

In the manga

Aether Foundation Employees in Pokémon Adventures

In the Pokémon Adventures manga

Aether Foundation Employees debuted in PASM11, where two were seen on a commercial advertising their organization.

Masked Aether Foundation Employees in Pokémon Adventures

In PASM13, a group of Employees were seen at Aether Paradise filming another Aether Foundation commercial.

In PASM15, a male Employee reported to Faba about Moon, Professor Kukui, and Professor Burnet, who had been rescued from a shipwreck and taken to Aether Paradise to recuperate. Faba had his Hypno attack the Employee for failing to use his proper title of Branch Chief as a way of ensuring that he would never do it again. Scared, the Employee apologized for his mistake and ran away.

In PASM16, two Employees appeared in a flashback where they were seen protecting a pair of Lillipup from a group of Team Skull Grunts. They were rescued by Mallow.

In PASM22, Faba and a group of masked Employees set off to Vast Poni Canyon. After arriving at their destination, Faba sent a small group of Employees to capture Hapu, the newly appointed Kahuna of Poni Island, while he and the remaining Employees traveled to the Altar. Before the Altar team could leave, they were attacked by Moon and Anabel. Worried that his plans would be jeopardized, Faba had the Employees battle Moon's Pokémon, hoping that the clash would be enough of a distraction to allow him to escape.

After Faba left, Anabel switched out Moon's Pokémon for her own and used them to keep the Altar team busy while she, Moon, and Plumeria followed after the Branch Chief. Elsewhere, the Kahuna team encountered Hapu and Sun, but before they could capture their target, a Xurkitree that had been defeated by Gladion was thrown on top of them. Scared, the Kahuna team ran away and was told to join the Altar team and meet back with Faba. Once they arrived, Faba had the Employees join him in battling Moon, Anabel, and Plumeria.

Six months after the Poni Island incident, Faba had managed to take control of the Aether Foundation, running it like a dictatorship. Despite this, several Employees refused to fully ally themselves with Faba and secretly plan to stop him. When Lusamine when missing, a female Employee and Wicke managed to locate her on Poni Island playing with a group of Ultra Beasts. Their attempts to dock on the island were thwarted by a Celesteela, forcing them to return to the Aether House on Ula'ula Island and meet up with Gladion and Lillie. Wicke decided the best option was for her and the Employee to return to Aether Paradise and gather information before making their next move.

Pokémon

		Ledian (×2)
		A Ledian was used to battle a group of attacking Team Skull Grunts in order to protect some Lillipup. Another Ledian was used by Employee at Vast Poni Canyon to battle against Moon's Rowlet. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel again in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of their moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Lileep
		Lileep was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. None of Lileep's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Magneton
		Magneton was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of Magneton's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Raticate
		An Alolan Raticate was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. None of Raticate's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Vanilluxe
		Vanilluxe was sent out by an Employee at Vast Poni Canyon to battle against Moon. It battled against Moon's Mareanie. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel again in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of Vanilluxe's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Sliggoo
		Sliggoo was sent out by an Employee at Vast Poni Canyon to battle against Moon. None of Sliggoo's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Lumineon
		Lumineon was sent out by an Employee at Vast Poni Canyon to battle against Moon. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel again in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of Lumineon's moves are known.
Debut	PASM23

		Parasect
		Parasect was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. None of Parasect's moves are known.
Debut	PASM24

		Houndoom
		Houndoom was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of Houndoom's moves are known.
Debut	PASM24

		Pupitar
		Pupitar was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. None of Pupitar's moves are known.
Debut	PASM24

		Arbok
		Arbok was sent out by an Employee as part of Faba's plan to capture Hapu. Later, it was used to battle Moon and Anabel in order to prevent them from chasing after Faba. None of Arbok's moves are known.
Debut	PASM24

In the TCG

This is a listing of cards mentioning or featuring Aether Foundation Employee in the Pokémon Trading Card Game.

Related cards Cards listed with a blue background are only legal to use in the current Expanded format. Cards listed with a green background are legal to use in both the current Standard and Expanded formats.
Card	Type	English Expansion	Rarity	#	Japanese Expansion	Rarity	#
Aether Foundation Employee	Su	Lost Thunder		168/214	SM-P Promotional cards		219/SM-P
					GX Ultra Shiny		151/150

In other languages

Language Title Chinese Cantonese 以太基金會的職員 Yíhtaai Gēigāmwúi-dīk Jīkyùhn Mandarin 以太基金會的職員 Yǐtài Jījīnhuì-de Zhíyuán * 以太基金会职员 Yǐtài Jījīnhuì Zhíyuán * Czech Zaměstnanec Aether Foundation French Employé de la Fondation Æther (♂) Employée de la Fondation Æther (♀) German Æther Foundation Personal Hungarian Aether Alapítvány Alkalmazottai Italian Dipendente (Fondazione Æther) Korean 에테르재단직원 Aether Jaedan Jig-won Polish Pracownik Fundacji Aether* Pracownik fundacji Aether* Brazilian Portuguese Funcionários da Aether* Spanish Empleado de la Fundacion Æther (♂) Empleada de la Fundacion Æther (♀)

Aether Foundation
Aether Paradise • Heahea City • Aether Bases (Route 8 • Route 16) • Aether House
President	Branch Chiefs
Lusamine (Masters • anime)	Wicke	Faba (anime)
Other members
Aether Foundation Employees		Scientists
Former	Related
Professor Mohn	Lillie (Masters • anime)	Gladion (Masters • anime)
Animation and manga
Former members: Jessie • James • Meowth Ultra Guardians: Ash • Lana • Kiawe • Lillie • Sophocles • Mallow • Gladion
See also: Team Skull • Ultra Recon Squad

This Trainer Class article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games.