DOD Directs Employees To Ignore Elon Musk’s Federal Productivity Survey

The Department of Defense has publicly instructed its civilian workforce to disregard an email from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) requesting employees to submit their weekly accomplishments. The directive came from Darin S. Selnick, acting as the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, emphasizing that the DOD will handle performance reviews internally."

DoD personnel may have received an email from OPM requesting information. The Department of Defense is responsible for reviewing the performance of its personnel and it will conduct any review in accordance with its own procedures," Selnick wrote. "When and if required, the Department will coordinate responses to the email you have received from OPM. For now, please pause any response to the OPM email titled, ‘What did you do last week.’"

Musk’s Directive and White House Support

Elon Musk, senior advisor to President Donald Trump and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced Saturday that all federal employees must submit a brief report detailing their productivity by Monday night. He warned that failure to respond would be considered a resignation."

Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week," Musk posted on X. “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.”

Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week.

Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 22, 2025

 He later clarified that the report should be simple, taking less than five minutes to write.

Other Agencies Also Resist

The Pentagon is not the only agency resisting Musk’s directive. The FBI, through Director Kash Patel, also told employees to hold off on responding, stating that the bureau would conduct its own reviews. 

The State Department issued a similar statement, with acting undersecretary Tibor P. Nagy assuring employees that the department would respond on their behalf.

Deadline Approaching Amid Pushback

The deadline for submitting reports remains 11:59 p.m. EST on Monday, but resistance from key federal agencies, particularly in security-related departments, raises questions about the effectiveness of Musk’s initiative. 

The Department of Homeland Security, National Security Agency, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence have not commented on the directive.

 Also Read:

• Trump Ally Kash Patel Confirmed As FBI Director In Contentious Senate Vote
• Millions Listed as Over 100 in Social Security Database—Musk Alleges Massive Fraud
• Elon Musk and Donald Trump Sued By 14 States Over Alleged Unconstitutional Role At DOGE