Elon Musk’s Ultimatum to Federal Workers: Justify Work or Resign
In a bold move that sent shockwaves through the federal workforce, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk took to his social media platform X on Saturday to issue a powerful ultimatum to federal employees. His message was clear: justify the work you completed this week in an email or resign.
Sources familiar with the matter revealed to NBC News that federal employees had already started receiving emails prompting them to summarize their weekly accomplishments. Unlike Musk’s direct threat of forced resignation, the official email from the Office of Personnel Management urged employees to list about five bullet points of their achievements, copying their managers. The email emphasized the importance of not sharing classified information, links, or attachments and set a deadline for responses by the following Monday at 11:59 p.m. ET.
“Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week. Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation,” Musk’s post read.
McLaurine Pineover, a spokesperson for the Office of Personnel Management, clarified that the request for work summaries was part of the Trump Administration’s commitment to an efficient and accountable federal workforce. Agencies would assess how to proceed based on employees’ responses.
In a surprising twist, FBI Director Kash Patel advised FBI employees to hold off on responding to the email until the bureau could review the situation internally. This move indicated a divergence in approach between the FBI and Musk’s call for heightened productivity.
Everett Kelley, the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, didn’t mince words in condemning Musk and the Trump administration for their apparent lack of regard for federal employees. His strong statement promised to challenge any “unlawful terminations” of union members and federal workers nationwide.
Kelley’s words captured the frustration and outrage felt by many at the prospect of being held accountable by individuals who seemed disconnected from the reality of public service. The sentiment was echoed by a chapter representing National Treasury Employees Union members working for the FDA, who advised their members to refrain from responding to the email, citing a lack of formal adoption or communication of the directive by their employer.
The email initiative was part of Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency’s broader efforts to streamline the federal workforce, which included proposed mass layoffs, accidental terminations of Department of Agriculture officials working on critical tasks like the bird flu response, and the dismantling of agencies such as USAID. These actions came at a time when over 3 million individuals were employed by the federal government as of November 2024, as reported by the Pew Research Center.
As the situation continued to unfold, the public’s attention turned to the implications of Musk’s ultimatum and its potential impact on government operations and employee morale. The need for accountability and efficiency was evident, but the manner in which it was being enforced sparked debates and concerns across the nation.
Ryan J. Reilly, Raquel Coronell Uribe, Ken Dilanian, Nnamdi Egwuonwu, Jacob Soboroff, and Vaughn Hillyard contributed to this report.
This article dives deep into the clash between billionaire Elon Musk and federal employees, shedding light on the complexities of accountability, leadership, and public service in the modern era. The tensions between the expectations of productivity and the realities of bureaucratic processes provide a fascinating backdrop to a story that continues to evolve.
