On Saturday afternoon, federal employees received an email requesting them to outline their achievements from the previous week or face potential resignation – marking the latest action in the Trump administration’s campaign against the federal workforce.
This email was prompted by billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk’s tweet indicating that staff would “soon receive an email asking for their completed tasks from the last week.”
He remarked, “Failure to respond will be interpreted as a resignation.”
Musk has been spearheading an external initiative to significantly reduce government expenditures through drastic funding cuts and layoffs.
The email arrived shortly after President Trump addressed the Conservative Political Action Conference (Cpac). The subject line read “What did you accomplish last week?” and was sent from an HR account.
According to a copy of the email reviewed by the BBC, employees were requested to outline their accomplishments from the previous week in five bullet points – ensuring no classified information was disclosed – by midnight on Monday.
The Office of Personnel Management, which handles human resources for the federal government, confirmed the legitimacy of the emails in a statement to CBS, the BBC’s US news partner.
“In alignment with the Trump Administration’s dedication to a productive and accountable federal workforce, OPM is requesting that employees provide a brief overview of their activities from last week by the end of Monday, CC’ing their manager. Agencies will determine any subsequent actions.”
The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents the largest group of federal workers, criticized the communication as “heartless and disrespectful” and pledged to contest any “unlawful dismissals” of federal personnel.
“Once again, Elon Musk and the Trump Administration have demonstrated their total disregard for federal employees and the essential services they offer to the citizens of America,” stated Everett Kelley, union president.
Earlier that day, President Donald Trump highlighted budget cuts and claimed in front of supporters at Cpac that the performance of federal employees was subpar since they failed to report to the office.
The Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) is not a formal government entity, yet Musk’s team has implemented extensive modifications to the US federal framework with the White House’s endorsement.
In recent weeks, numerous employees from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Pentagon, and the Federal Aviation Administration, among other agencies, have been terminated.
This email resembles Musk’s management style following his acquisition of the social media platform Twitter in 2022, where ultimatums were issued, including a notorious demand for employees to commit to being “extremely hardcore” or resign.
Trump has consistently praised Musk’s efforts in cutting costs.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump remarked that Musk is performing a “fantastic job” at downsizing the federal government, expressing his desire for Musk to “become even more aggressive” in this endeavor.
