Federal Employees File Lawsuit Over OPM Notice and Musk Termination Threat

On February 23, federal workers filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government over Elon Musk’s warning to employees that they could face termination if they did not respond to a new mass email requesting them to outline some of their recent accomplishments.

In an email titled “What did you do last week?” sent on February 22, employees were asked to provide five bullet points detailing what they had achieved in the previous week.

Moreover, the OPM failed to inform employees that not responding to the email would be construed as submitting a resignation, according to the groups.

This lack of notification indicates that the OPM has not adhered to federal law, as asserted in the lawsuit.

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Neither the OPM nor the U.S. Department of Justice, which serves as legal counsel for government agencies, responded promptly to requests for comment. The OPM has not yet addressed the lawsuit, which was initially filed on February 19.

The Administrative Procedure Act permits courts to declare unlawful and annul agency actions that are found to have been enacted “without observance of procedure required by law.”

The plaintiffs are urging the federal court to declare the email unlawful and to prevent the defendants from dismissing probationary employees, an action they claim is also being executed by the OPM in violation of the authority granted to each agency head by Congress to manage their employees.

The Trump administration, which has tasked Musk and DOGE with collaborating with agencies to reduce costs and enhance efficiency, has already terminated thousands of employees, primarily those on probation. This includes personnel who have been with the government for less than a year.

The OPM’s buyout program has also reportedly led to approximately 75,000 resignations, according to the White House.

Musk stated on Sunday that many employees have already responded to the mass email, which had a deadline of late Monday.