Federal Agencies Clash Over Musk’s Directive as Deadline Looms

Conflicting Guidance Sparks Confusion Among Federal Workers

Federal agencies were divided over whether employees should comply with Elon Musk’s directive to list five accomplishments from the past week, creating widespread confusion as the midnight deadline approached, according to emails reviewed by NPR. The agency overseeing the request, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), issued conflicting guidance on Monday, adding to the uncertainty.

Some Agencies Reject the Directive, Others Mandate Compliance

Over the weekend, officials from the Departments of Defense, State, Homeland Security, and Energy instructed employees not to respond to the government-wide email titled “What did you do last week?” sent by OPM on Saturday. However, that guidance clashed with earlier instructions from leaders within the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), both housed within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Similarly, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) initially directed staff to respond but later reversed course. A Sunday evening email told employees to “pause” responses pending further guidance. By late Monday, a third message clarified that HHS employees were not required to reply and that their jobs would not be at risk if they declined to do so.

For those who chose to respond, the department cautioned against disclosing the names of colleagues, ongoing projects, or specific grants and contracts. “Assume that what you write will be read by malign foreign actors and tailor your response accordingly,” the email warned.

Meanwhile, several other agencies—including the Departments of the Treasury, Veterans Affairs, Commerce, and Interior—directed employees to comply, though they provided varying instructions and emphasized that classified information should not be shared.

Internal Emails Reveal Anxiety and Fear of Retaliation

Internal emails obtained by NPR show that current and former government employees, fearing retaliation from the Trump administration, shared details of the chaotic rollout anonymously.

By late Monday, OPM revised its guidance, according to messages circulated at HHS and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). A memo obtained by NPR indicated that OPM instructed agencies to clarify that responding was “voluntary” and that “not responding will not be considered a resignation.”

However, a separate public guidance note from OPM’s acting director, Charles Ezell, omitted any reference to the voluntary nature of the request. Instead, Ezell wrote that agencies “should review responses and evaluate nonresponses,” adding that agency leaders may take action against employees who fail to comply.

Musk and Trump Fuel Pressure Campaign

Elon Musk escalated the pressure, posting on X that federal workers had “another chance” to comply or risk being fired.

Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, made unfounded claims that some federal employees were failing to respond because “they don’t even exist.”

“And then if you don’t answer, like, you’re sort of semi-fired or you’re fired, because a lot of people are not answering because they don’t even exist,” Trump said, offering no evidence for his assertion.

Trump also downplayed the agencies that refused to comply, including the State Department and the FBI, calling their decision a “friendly” one. “They don’t mean that in any way combatively with Elon. They’re just saying there are some people that you don’t want to really have them tell you what they’re working on last week,” he said.

OPM did not respond to NPR’s request for comment or clarification.

Resistance From Federal Agencies Grows

The divide among agencies signals growing pushback against Musk’s controversial Department of Government Efficiency initiative, which aims to reshape federal operations.

A senior State Department official told staff that the department would respond on its own behalf, emphasizing that “no employee is obligated to report their activities outside their Department chain of command,” according to an email seen by NPR.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright also asserted his department’s independence in a message to staff on Sunday. “The Department of Energy is responsible for reviewing the performance of its personnel and will conduct any review in accordance with its own procedures,” Wright wrote. His message mirrored language used in a separate Defense Department email sent the same day.

Federal Workers Face Uncertainty Amid Legal Challenge

The chaotic rollout has left many federal employees feeling uncertain about their job security.

“My entire weekend has been a stress-filled ball of crazy. No one seems to know who is running the country. No one knows what we are supposed to do,” one federal employee told NPR anonymously, citing fear of retaliation.

Despite OPM’s updated guidance claiming compliance is voluntary, some federal workers feel pressured to respond.

“I hate to comply, but I feel it’s safer to respond,” another employee said. “Whiplash is an accurate description of micromanagement from a shadow office.”

Adding to the confusion, some government contractors—who are not officially part of the federal workforce—also received the email, NPR reported. These contractors do not appear in official workforce data and are not directly hired or fired by the government.

Lawsuit Seeks to Block Firings Over Noncompliance

A coalition of labor unions and advocacy groups has filed a lawsuit in federal court in San Francisco, seeking to block the Trump administration from terminating probationary employees and compelling responses to OPM’s email.

The lawsuit, originally filed on Feb. 19, argues that OPM lacks the authority to manage employees outside its own agency.

U.S. District Judge William Alsup has given the government until 10 a.m. PT on Wednesday to file its opposition, with a hearing scheduled for Thursday afternoon.

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