Elon Musk Tells Government Employees to List 5 Things They Did Last Week or Be Fired to See Who Has 'Two Working Neurons'

Mar. 15, 2025

Elon Musk arrives for the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Jan. 20 in Washington, DC.Photo:Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty

Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty

Elon Muskis keeping a close eye on the federal workforce.

On Saturday, Feb. 22, the senior adviser to PresidentDonald Trumpand head of the Department of Government Efficiency took to X to announce a move concerning federal government employees.

“Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week,” he posted. “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.”

Soon after, federal employees received an email from the Office of Personnel Management titled: “What did you do last week?”

“Please reply to this email with approx. 5 bullets of what you accomplished this week and cc your manager,” the email read. The message stated that all employees had until 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 24, to reply.

While Musk’s initial post said those who did not comply would lose their jobs, the email did not.

On Monday, Feb. 24, he doubled down,writing on X, “Those who do not take this email seriously will soon be furthering their career elsewhere.”

Elon Musk carries his son X Æ A-Xii on his shoulders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 11, 2025.JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty

JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty

DOGE, which is not an official federal department, has been behind a push to eliminate several thousand federal workers since its inception.

Despite the latest threat of termination from Musk, some agency heads — who have otherwise been loyal to Trump — informed their employees to ignore the request.

“The F.B.I., through the Office of the Director, is in charge of all of our review processes, and will conduct reviews in accordance with F.B.I. procedures,” FBI Director Kash Patel wrote in an email to staff, according toThe New York Times. “When and if further information is required, we will coordinate the responses. For now, please pause any responses.”

Tulsi Gabbard attends a live taping of ‘Hannity’ at Fox News Channel Studios on Sep. 13, 2023 in New York City.Steven Ferdman/Getty

Steven Ferdman/Getty

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard followed suit, writing, “Given the inherently sensitive and classified nature of our work, [intelligence community] employees should not respond to the OPM email.”

While some offered guidance privately, the Department of Defense publicly shared its directive to employees on X, which said, “For now, please pause any response to the OPM email titled ‘What did you do last week.’ "

Everett Kelley, the union president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said Trump and Musk’s move was out of “utter disdain for federal employees and the critical services they provide to the American people.”

“It is cruel and disrespectful to hundreds of thousands of veterans who are wearing their second uniform in the civil service to be forced to justify their job duties to this out-of-touch, privileged, unelected billionaire who has never performed one single hour of honest public service in his life,” Kelly said. “AFGE will challenge any unlawful terminations of our members and federal employees across the country.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

McLaurine Pinover, a spokesperson for OPM, confirmed the existence of the office’s email and said, “Agencies will determine any next steps.”

source: people.com