Some told to justify their jobs to Musk but others told to ignore him
Agencies divided on complying with Musk’s directive as mass layoffs hit US government contractors
24 February 2025 - 16:28
byAndy Sullivan and Jonathan Landay
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Washington — US government workers who have been buffeted by President Donald Trump’s chaotic return to power face more uncertainty on Monday, when many of them will be required to justify their jobs to Elon Musk, the chainsaw-wielding billionaire tasked with slashing the federal budget.
Musk’s demand for civil-service workers to submit a summary of their work by 11.59pm ET (4.59am GMT) has opened up fissures in Trump’s administration.
Agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Communications Commission have told employees to comply. But many others, including the departments of defence, homeland security, education, commerce and energy have ordered workers not to respond.
The department of health and human services told its workers to co-operate, then later told them to hold off while it figured out how to “best meet the intent” of Musk’s unusual directive.
Workers at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also received Musk’s email, even though they have already been ordered to cease working.
Musk warned federal workers to comply, writing in a Monday morning post on his social media network X: “Those who do not take this email seriously will soon be furthering their career elsewhere.”
He also said in a separate post that federal staff who still did not return to work in their offices after Trump’s order last month would be placed on administrative leave starting this week.
The world’s richest person, Musk has led a downsizing effort that has laid off more than 20,000 workers and offered buyouts to another 75,000 across wide swathes of the 2.3-million strong civil service, from bank regulators to park rangers.
In some cases, the government has scrambled to re-hire workers who perform critical functions like nuclear weapons oversight and bird flu response. The downsizing also prompted a wave of lawsuits, including by labour groups.
Trump’s administration said late Sunday it would fire 1,600 workers at the US Agency for International Development and put nearly all remaining personnel on leave. Trump has already halted almost all of the agency’s funding and operations, throwing global humanitarian relief efforts into chaos.
The mass firings have suddenly thrust financial insecurity on workers who had counted on their jobs to provide a secure income.
Charles Farinella, a fired IRS agent in New York, said he was trying to figure out whether he should cancel an upcoming dentist appointment because he has not been told whether he still has coverage through his job.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I might have to look to sell my house, because I don’t have a severance or anything,” he said. “I feel pretty much devastated.”
Musk’s job-slashing effort has rippled into the wider US economy as well, forcing companies that do business with the government to lay off their own workers and defer payments to vendors. One company that works with USAID, Chemonics, said in a court filing last week that it had furloughed 750 employees, 63% of its workforce.
Musk has revelled in the chaos, even wielding a chainsaw at a conservative political conference last week.
The chief of Tesla and social media platform X has said he aims to cut $1-trillion from the government's $6.7-trillion budget. Trump has promised to exempt popular health and retirement benefits, which puts nearly half of the budget effectively off limits, but Musk said he would examine those programmes for fraudulent payments.
“We are increasingly optimistic that, as the immense waste & fraud are eliminated from Social Security & Medical that there is potential to increase actual dollars received by citizens & better healthcare!” he wrote on X on Sunday.
The Government Accountability Office, a watchdog agency, estimates the total of fraud and improper payments could be as high as $521-billion annually, equal to 8% of spending last year.
Opposition Democrats say the budget-cutting effort violates Congress’s authority to control government spending, but they have been largely powerless to stop it.
Republicans in Congress have cheered the effort as they prepare sweeping legislation of their own to enact trillions of dollars in tax cuts.
But some Republicans have faced boos from voters back home who have said Musk is overstepping his authority.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Some told to justify their jobs to Musk but others told to ignore him
Agencies divided on complying with Musk’s directive as mass layoffs hit US government contractors
Washington — US government workers who have been buffeted by President Donald Trump’s chaotic return to power face more uncertainty on Monday, when many of them will be required to justify their jobs to Elon Musk, the chainsaw-wielding billionaire tasked with slashing the federal budget.
Musk’s demand for civil-service workers to submit a summary of their work by 11.59pm ET (4.59am GMT) has opened up fissures in Trump’s administration.
Agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Communications Commission have told employees to comply. But many others, including the departments of defence, homeland security, education, commerce and energy have ordered workers not to respond.
The department of health and human services told its workers to co-operate, then later told them to hold off while it figured out how to “best meet the intent” of Musk’s unusual directive.
Workers at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also received Musk’s email, even though they have already been ordered to cease working.
Musk warned federal workers to comply, writing in a Monday morning post on his social media network X: “Those who do not take this email seriously will soon be furthering their career elsewhere.”
He also said in a separate post that federal staff who still did not return to work in their offices after Trump’s order last month would be placed on administrative leave starting this week.
The world’s richest person, Musk has led a downsizing effort that has laid off more than 20,000 workers and offered buyouts to another 75,000 across wide swathes of the 2.3-million strong civil service, from bank regulators to park rangers.
In some cases, the government has scrambled to re-hire workers who perform critical functions like nuclear weapons oversight and bird flu response. The downsizing also prompted a wave of lawsuits, including by labour groups.
Trump’s administration said late Sunday it would fire 1,600 workers at the US Agency for International Development and put nearly all remaining personnel on leave. Trump has already halted almost all of the agency’s funding and operations, throwing global humanitarian relief efforts into chaos.
The mass firings have suddenly thrust financial insecurity on workers who had counted on their jobs to provide a secure income.
Charles Farinella, a fired IRS agent in New York, said he was trying to figure out whether he should cancel an upcoming dentist appointment because he has not been told whether he still has coverage through his job.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I might have to look to sell my house, because I don’t have a severance or anything,” he said. “I feel pretty much devastated.”
Musk’s job-slashing effort has rippled into the wider US economy as well, forcing companies that do business with the government to lay off their own workers and defer payments to vendors. One company that works with USAID, Chemonics, said in a court filing last week that it had furloughed 750 employees, 63% of its workforce.
Musk has revelled in the chaos, even wielding a chainsaw at a conservative political conference last week.
The chief of Tesla and social media platform X has said he aims to cut $1-trillion from the government's $6.7-trillion budget. Trump has promised to exempt popular health and retirement benefits, which puts nearly half of the budget effectively off limits, but Musk said he would examine those programmes for fraudulent payments.
“We are increasingly optimistic that, as the immense waste & fraud are eliminated from Social Security & Medical that there is potential to increase actual dollars received by citizens & better healthcare!” he wrote on X on Sunday.
The Government Accountability Office, a watchdog agency, estimates the total of fraud and improper payments could be as high as $521-billion annually, equal to 8% of spending last year.
Opposition Democrats say the budget-cutting effort violates Congress’s authority to control government spending, but they have been largely powerless to stop it.
Republicans in Congress have cheered the effort as they prepare sweeping legislation of their own to enact trillions of dollars in tax cuts.
But some Republicans have faced boos from voters back home who have said Musk is overstepping his authority.
Reuters
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