A mass wave of confusion has engulfed the US federal workforce following an email from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), prompting several key agencies to instruct their employees to hold off on responding. The email, part of a cost-cutting initiative led by Elon Musk, asked federal employees to provide a summary of their accomplishments from the past week in five bullet points. The message, which was sent on late last week, did not explicitly state whether non-compliance would impact employment status. However, Musk later asserted on his social media platform X that failure to respond by Monday midnight would be interpreted as a resignation.
The email’s sudden arrival and its vague implications left federal employees scrambling for clarity. While OPM confirmed the email’s authenticity, several federal agencies issued immediate directives urging employees not to respond until further instructions were provided. Others reassured their workforce that agency leadership would handle the matter on their behalf. The conflicting guidance across different government bodies has only deepened the confusion, leaving bureaucrats uncertain about how to proceed.
Which agencies have asked workers to hold off?
Among the agencies that instructed employees to ignore or delay responding to the OPM email are:
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Director Kash Patel directed employees to “pause any responses” and stated that the FBI would conduct its own review process according to internal procedures.
State Department: Acting Undersecretary for Management Tibor Nagy informed employees that no individual staff member was obligated to report their activities outside of their department’s chain of command. Leadership would handle the response on behalf of the department.
Pentagon (Department of Defense): Employees were advised to disregard the email, with the department asserting that only the Pentagon itself is responsible for reviewing personnel performance.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS): Deputy Undersecretary for Management R.D. “Tex” Alles advised employees not to respond, stating that management would take care of it.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA): Issued similar guidance instructing employees to hold off on any response.
Department of Justice (DOJ): Initially uncertain about the email’s legitimacy, the DOJ later confirmed it was not spam but still advised employees to await further instructions and avoid including sensitive or classified information in any response.
National Security Agency (NSA): Employees were told to wait for official guidance before taking any action.
Internal Revenue Service (IRS): Issued a directive urging employees to hold off on responding.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): Employees were advised to await further instructions.
Two Major Federal Unions (AFGE and NTEU): The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) warned members to be cautious in responding, with AFGE President Everett Kelley stating that the union would challenge any unlawful terminations.
The conflicting instructions between federal leadership and the Musk-led OPM initiative have left government employees in a difficult position. Some agencies, according to various media reports, such as the Department of Transportation, the Secret Service, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, encouraged compliance with the email, adding further to the inconsistency in directives.
