Federal employees remain in limbo after Elon Musk announced they would have “another chance” to justify their positions or face termination, despite previous guidance from some Trump administration officials suggesting compliance was voluntary.
The conflicting directives have sown confusion across federal agencies. While departments such as the U.S. Treasury instructed staff to respond to Musk’s mandate, others, including the Pentagon, did not. The controversy has become a high-profile test of Musk’s growing influence over government operations.
Over the weekend, federal workers received an email requesting them to summarize their weekly accomplishments by Monday. Musk later took to X, the social media platform he owns, warning that failure to comply would be considered a resignation.
However, as the deadline neared, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM)—now led by Musk appointees—told employees they could disregard the request. Despite this, Musk doubled down on his stance, emphasizing his authority under President Donald Trump’s push to radically downsize the federal government.
“Subject to the discretion of the president, they will be given another chance. Failure to respond a second time will result in termination,” Musk posted on X late Monday.
The White House has remained silent on Musk’s statements, adding to the uncertainty. Earlier on Monday, Trump told reporters that employees who did not respond would be “sort of semi-fired,” further complicating the administration’s messaging.
Meanwhile, OPM has shifted its attention to senior civil service managers. Acting agency head Chris Ezel issued a memo on Tuesday directing supervisors to identify and dismiss underperforming managers. The evaluation criteria now include an assessment of how well these officials align with the president’s policy goals.
With agencies divided and no clear policy in place, federal workers are left awaiting further clarification on whether Musk’s ultimatum will result in actual terminations—or if this is yet another escalation in the administration’s efforts to reshape the federal workforce.
