Musk vs. The Government: Federal agencies reject work directive

Elon Musk's recent demand for federal employees to justify their work has been dismissed by multiple U.S. government agencies, as they assert that Musk lacks the authority to oversee their roles. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has officially told federal workers that they are under no obligation to respond to Musk's directive.

On Saturday, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) emailed around 2 million federal workers with the subject line "What did you do last week?" The email asked employees to list five bullet points detailing their accomplishments from the previous week, with a warning that failing to respond could be considered as resignation.

Musk, who also serves as an advisor to former President Donald Trump, took to X (formerly Twitter) to reinforce the demand, stating that non-compliance would be treated as a resignation. However, federal workers received a follow-up email on Monday, clarifying that responding to the request was voluntary.

In response, the OPM made it clear that workers were free to disregard Musk's request. More than a dozen agencies have instructed their staff not to comply, emphasizing that Musk does not have direct authority over their employment.

Darin Selnick, Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, addressed the Department of Defense's personnel, stating, "The Department of Defense is responsible for evaluating its employees' performance, and any required reviews will be conducted according to our established procedures. For now, please do not respond to the OPM email titled 'What did you do last week?'"

Several federal agencies, including the Department of Treasury, Department of Transportation, and independent bodies such as the Federal Communications Commission and Federal Trade Commission, have directed their staff to comply with Musk's email.

However, key departments like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, NASA, and others have disregarded Musk's directive. Notably, Musk does not hold the authority to dismiss federal workers, leading many to see this as an attempt to push for government efficiency and reduce spending.