5 hours ago
22
US government employees received a startling email on Saturday afternoon demanding that they list their accomplishments from the past week—or risk being considered as having resigned.
The directive, part of President Trump’s aggressive efforts to shrink the federal workforce, has drawn swift backlash from unions and government officials.
The email, sent from a sender listed as “HR” with the subject line “What did you do last week?”, required employees to submit five bullet points outlining their work by Monday night, copying their managers.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which oversees federal employment, confirmed the email’s authenticity, stating that agencies would determine “any next steps” based on employee responses.
The directive closely followed a tweet from billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, who warned that government workers would “shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week.” He added, “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.”
Musk has played a central role in Trump’s push for sweeping government reforms, leading an outside effort to slash federal spending and downsize agencies. His influence has been formalised through the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which has already overseen mass layoffs at the IRS, Pentagon, and FAA in recent weeks.
Trump, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, doubled down on his administration’s stance, saying, “We’re removing all of the unnecessary, incompetent, and corrupt bureaucrats from the federal workforce. We want to keep the best people, and we’re not going to keep the worst people.”
The president has frequently praised Musk’s efforts, recently posting on Truth Social that the billionaire is doing a “great job” reducing the size of government and should “get more aggressive” in the process.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the largest union representing federal workers, condemned the email as “cruel and disrespectful.”
“Once again, Elon Musk and the Trump Administration have shown their utter disdain for federal employees and the critical services they provide to the American people,” said AFGE President Everett Kelley, vowing to fight any unlawful terminations.
Newly confirmed FBI Director Kash Patel also pushed back, instructing bureau employees to “pause any responses” to the OPM directive. In an internal email, Patel emphasised that the FBI would conduct its own review process in accordance with agency procedures.
The ultimatum mirrors Musk’s past tactics in the private sector, particularly his handling of employees after acquiring Twitter in 2022. Following his takeover, he issued an infamous demand for staff to commit to being “extremely hardcore” or resign—a strategy that led to mass layoffs.
With Trump’s second administration embracing similar approaches in government, the battle over federal employment is set to escalate, as agencies, unions, and workers push back against what they view as an unprecedented purge of public servants.
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