Unions and advocacy groups representing federal employees have filed a lawsuit challenging an email sent to the entire federal workforce, instructing them to explain their work or face termination. The lawsuit alleges the email, sent by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), violates federal workforce laws and that the OPM lacks the authority to make such a demand.
The email, received by employees on Friday, asked for a five-item list of accomplishments from the past week (excluding classified information). It sparked confusion and alarm, especially after several agency leaders, including Trump appointees, advised staff not to respond.
However, Elon Musk, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), insisted he was acting on instructions from the former President and that failure to reply by Monday night “will be taken as a resignation.” This conflicting guidance created uncertainty among federal workers.
Over the weekend, public health workers at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) received a series of conflicting directives. Initially told to respond, they were later instructed to “pause” action on the email while HHS officials worked with the administration’s personnel office. An HHS employee described the situation as “driving us insane.”
Similar instructions to disregard the email came from the Departments of Justice and Defense, and the FBI, all headed by appointees. The Department of Transportation, however, directed employees to comply. The White House maintained that everyone was “working together as one unified team.”
The new lawsuit is an addition to one filed last week challenging mass firings of federal workers. It argues that “no OPM rule, regulation, policy, or program has ever…purported to require all federal workers to submit reports to OPM.” Major federal employee unions and advocacy groups are part of the lawsuit.
Concerns have been raised about the potential for revealing classified information or violating government procedures. The president of the American Federation of Government Employees has written to OPM leadership emphasizing the duty to protect sensitive information.
Mr. Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency have implemented aggressive measures to reduce the federal workforce, including emails threatening layoffs, buyouts, dismissal of probationary employees, and ordering managers to create lists of employees for cuts.
These actions have generated anger within the federal workforce and a number of lawsuits. However, this latest directive marks a public disagreement with agency leadership. The president of the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service called the email “yet another example of the new administration’s contempt for public servants and public service.”
Supporters of the move, like Congressman Tim Burchett, argue that it promotes accountability, similar to practices in private business.
Add Comment