In Washington, federal employees are once again receiving emails requesting details of their recent work achievements, in a renewed effort led by President Donald Trump and entrepreneur Elon Musk to seek accountability from government workers. Initially anticipated for distribution on a Saturday, these emails began arriving late on a Friday evening. Information about this initiative was revealed by an anonymous source familiar with the plan who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
A previous email, distributed a week prior, asked employees to detail five tasks completed during the week. Elon Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency, assigned by Trump to streamline government operations and reduce federal positions, warned of termination for those who didn’t respond. Many government departments, however, advised staff against responding or provided unclear guidance on how to proceed.
The latest email, according to inside sources, was expected to be delivered through a different channel. Rather than being sent from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) – a central agency for human resources without hiring or firing authority – the email was to be issued by individual agencies directly overseeing career staff. Late Friday, some personnel at two different agencies received emails titled “What did you do last week? Part II” from “hr@opm.gov,” the same address as before. Meanwhile, staff from a third agency got the email from an internal address.
The message instructed employees to reply with bullet points summarizing last week’s achievements, copying their manager, and required submissions weekly by Monday at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time. It remains uncertain how national security agencies, whose work includes sensitive and classified information, will handle this new request. After the first email, they advised against responses. The White House noted that fewer than half of federal employees replied.
One version of the email obtained Friday mentioned that if all activities are classified or sensitive, employees should state “All of my activities are sensitive.” Despite this provision, there remains concern over creating a digital record with email correspondence. The OPM did not respond immediately for clarification at the time.
During his initial Cabinet meeting in his second presidential term, Trump and Musk described the requests as “pulse checks,” intending to verify government employees are engaged. Both claimed that some workers may be non-existent or even fictional. Trump stated those who did not respond to the initial email are “on the bubble” and expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of engagement, speculating without evidence on potentially paying non-existent employees.
A recent memo highlighted potential large-scale layoffs and program consolidations, following terminations of probationary employees. The Education Department offered a $25,000 incentive for voluntary departures, signaling potential layoffs. An internal email urged employees to make a decision by Monday regarding the buyout offer, linked to an anticipated major Reduction in Force. The department’s chief human capital officer sent the message, though the department has yet to comment publicly.