CEO of Tesla and SpaceX Elon Musk speaks on the Conservative Political Motion Convention (CPAC) on the Gaylord Nationwide Resort Resort And Conference Heart on Feb. 20, 2025 in Oxon Hill, Maryland.
Andrew Harnik | Getty Photos
DOGE chief Elon Musk doubled down Monday night time on his menace to fireplace federal staff who fail to submit a listing of 5 or so of their office accomplishments over the previous week.
“Topic to the discretion of the President, they are going to be given one other likelihood,” Musk stated about these staff in a submit on his social media web site X.
“Failure to reply a second time will end in termination,” wrote Musk, whom President Donald Trump has tasked with slashing federal authorities spending and worker headcount.
The Tesla CEO’s renewed warning got here hours after the Workplace of Personnel Administration contradicted his preliminary menace, telling prime human assets officers at departments throughout the federal government “that worker responses to the OPM e-mail” demanding the accomplishment tally “is voluntary.”
OPM on Saturday had despatched out a blast e-mail throughout the federal government, telling staff to submit that checklist by Monday night time.
Musk on Saturday tweeted about OPM’s e-mail, writing: “Failure to reply will likely be taken as a resignation.”
In an X submit on Monday, Musk wrote, “The e-mail request was totally trivial, as the usual for passing the take a look at was to kind some phrases and press ship!”
“But so many failed even that inane take a look at, urged on in some circumstances by their managers,” wrote Musk, whose worker- and cost-cutting effort is called the Division of Authorities Effectivity.
“Have you ever ever witnessed such INCOMPETENCE and CONTEMPT for the way YOUR TAXES are being spent?”
A newly amended lawsuit filed over the weekend cited Musk’s first menace.
The submitting in San Francisco federal court docket famous widespread confusion and controversy over whether or not staff should reply to OPM’s e-mail demand.
Some main departments, together with the Pentagon, advised their staff to carry off on responding to OPM’s demand.
Others, together with the Division of Well being and Human Companies and its Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Companies subsidiary, advised their staff to conform.
The lawsuit was first filed Wednesday by a gaggle of unions representing federal staff in opposition to OPM and performing OPM director Charles Ezell.
The swimsuit asks a choose to enjoin OPM from terminating “tens of hundreds of federal staff in contravention of federal constitutional and statutory legislation.
OPM on Feb 13 ordered federal companies “throughout the federal government to successfully eradicate the class of probationary worker, by terminating tens of hundreds of federal staff en masse,” the swimsuit famous
The swimsuit was amended after OPM in its e-mail applied a “new necessary reporting program for all federal staff, the criticism stated.
OPM’s e-mail carried the title, “What did you do final week?”
Please reply to this e-mail with approx. 5 bullets of what you completed final week and cc your supervisor,” the e-mail stated. “Deadline is that this Monday at 11:59 EST.”
Earlier than Saturday, federal staff weren’t required to submit any studies on their work to OPM, the swimsuit notes.
The amended lawsuit says that earlier than Saturday, “no discover was printed, within the Federal Register or anyplace else, relating to any OPM program, rule, coverage, or regulation requiring all federal staff to supply a report relating to their work to OPM.”
OPM “has not complied with any procedural necessities … with respect to this new program,” the swimsuit alleges.
And, the swimsuit, famous, after OPM despatched out the blast e-mail to federal staff on Saturday, “at the least some federal companies, together with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, started telling their staff not to answer this OPM shock request.”
Along with the FBI, the Justice Division, the Protection Division, the State Division, and nationwide intelligence companies have instructed their staff to not instantly reply to OPM’s e-mail.
However the Transportation Division has advised staff to reply, in accordance with an e-mail obtained by NBC Information on Monday.
“Please additionally be certain that you exclude categorised data, hyperlinks, and attachments,” the e-mail says.
A choose has scheduled a listening to for Thursday afternoon on the unions’ request for a brief restraining order blocking the mass terminations.
Musk’s threats to terminate staff who fail to conform was condemned by Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Authorities Workers, one of many unions suing OPM.
“As soon as once more, Elon Musk and the Trump Administration have proven their utter disdain for federal staff and the vital providers they supply to the American individuals,” Kelley stated in an announcement.
“It’s merciless and disrespectful to a whole lot of hundreds of veterans who’re carrying their second uniform within the civil service to be compelled to justify their job duties to this out-of-touch, privileged, unelected billionaire who has by no means carried out one single hour of trustworthy public service in his life,” Kelley stated.
