And then there were five

Today I learned that one of my labmates is leaving the lab and going to work with a professor in another department. One of the reasons he told us (the other students) is that he hasn't gotten paid in a year (on a TA, but that doesn't count in this department). Yikes. I know funds are tight, but should I be more concerned about this? Technically, I don't really work for my adviser, or the university for that matter, so maybe that's a good thing. Its sad though because there are a lot of really cool people in the lab (him included). And "just moving across campus" does not explain the magnitude of separation. How many grad students do you know that regularly see people who work in other buildings or departments?