US public sector employees experienced widespread confusion on Monday as a result of conflicting information regarding compliance with Elon Musk’s directive to submit an email detailing their previous week’s work, or face termination. Just two days after an email asking employees to recount their activities from the past week was sent, it was clarified that responses were voluntary, leaving each government agency to decide how to proceed. However, President Donald Trump intervened, stating that workers failing to follow Mr. Musk’s instructions would be either fired or “sort of semi-fired.”
Later that evening, Mr. Musk reinforced this deadline, affording employees a final opportunity to respond. The original email, dispatched by the Office of Personnel Management, instructed recipients to provide five examples of their work from the past week, without divulging classified information, and required a response by the end of Monday. Mr. Musk, heading the Department of Government Efficiency, insisted that not responding would be interpreted as a resignation. These comments sparked a backlash, prompting federal worker unions and activist groups to file a lawsuit in California to challenge the email mandate. Leading government agencies, including Defense, Health and Human Services, Justice, and the FBI,, advised their employees to disregard the directive, leading to widespread uncertainty and confusion among the workforce. Many employees reported receiving contradictory instructions throughout the weekend.
The Office of Personnel Management held a conference call on Monday with the heads of human resources from different government agencies to clarify the handling of the directive. Meanwhile, President Trump endorsed Mr. Musk’s approach, framing it as a “genius” measure to ascertain the productivity of the workforce. Mr. Musk claimed he was acting under President Trump’s direction and allowed non-responsive employees another chance to reply, warning that failure to do so the second time would lead to termination. He criticized the perceived incompetence and disdain for tax revenue displayed by those unable to meet even such a basic requirement.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyz2xk7d9xo
