Musk, the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced that according to Trump’s instructions, all federal employees must “submit weekly reports”, otherwise they will be deemed to have resigned. This undoubtedly caused an uproar in the US political circle.
Musk instructed federal staff to respond to the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) email before 11:59 pm Eastern Time on Monday. But more and more agencies, including the Pentagon, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the United States Department of State, have told employees not to respond.
Responses from Various US Agencies
In response, the US Department of Defense shared a message to its employees on the social media platform X, pointing out that it is responsible for reviewing employee performance. “If necessary, the department will coordinate responses to emails from the Office of Personnel Management. For now, please suspend any responses to emails from the Office of Personnel Management titled ‘What did you do last week’,” said Darin Selnick, the deputy secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, in a statement.
Kash Patel, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), also told employees not to respond to the email. Patel said the FBI will handle the response to the OPM request and will coordinate employee reviews consistent with FBI procedures.
In addition, the U.S. State Department has also instructed its employees not to respond. “Management will respond on behalf of the State Department.” Tibor Nagy, the acting undersecretary for management at the State Department, wrote in a notice: “No employee is obligated to report their activities to an agency outside the department system.”
Tulsi Gabbard, director of national intelligence, issued similar guidance to employees of the intelligence community (IC) agencies she oversees. “Given the sensitive and confidential nature of our work, IC employees should not respond to OPM emails,” she wrote.
Finally, the email also drew an angry response from federal employee unions. Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employers (AFGE), instructed its 800,000 members in a letter to Charles Ezell, acting director of the OPM, and Musk not to respond to the request received. Kelley said in the letter that the email did not determine the legal authority of the OPM to make this request. “Federal employees report to their respective agencies through their established chains of command. They do not report to the OPM,” he wrote. He also slammed the message as “irresponsible” and “childish” and intended to sow confusion and intimidate federal workers.
The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) sent an email to its members saying it “strongly” advises employees not to respond to the OPM request. “We are concerned about the impact of this request and are actively working to protect your rights,” the NTEU said in a statement.
However, not all federal agencies oppose the request. An email sent to employees at the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that the email was “legitimate” and advised employees to respond before the Monday deadline.
Trump Supports Musk’s “Weekly Report” Email
US President Trump talked to reporters about the “weekly report” email proposed by Musk, head of the US government’s efficiency department, when meeting with visiting French President Macron at the White House on the 24th. He said that federal government employees may lose their jobs if they do not “submit weekly reports.”
“I think this is great.” Trump told reporters when talking about this initiative, “Because some of our people don’t come to work at all, and no one even knows if they work for the government.” Trump said, “By asking this question, ‘Tell us what you did this week,’ (Musk) is asking, ‘Are you really working?’ If you don’t reply, then you are in a state close to being fired, or even fired.”
Musk, head of the US government’s efficiency department (DOGE), forwarded the relevant videos and reports on the social platform X 7 times, thanked Trump for his support, and commented that “the president is very clear.” Musk posted on social media X: “According to President Trump’s instructions, all federal employees will soon receive an email asking to know what they did last week. Failure to respond will be considered a resignation.”
Subsequently, tens of thousands of federal employees received an email that day saying “Please reply to this email, list about 5 tasks you completed last week, and copy your supervisor.” The sender of the email was the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, and the response deadline was set at 23:59 on the 24th. Faced with the above sudden request, the situation in various federal agencies can be described as “chaos.” Kelly, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, criticized Musk and Trump for showing “extreme contempt” for federal employees.
