In an unprecedented move, Elon Musk, head of the White House's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has given hundreds of thousands of federal workers a 48-hour ultimatum to explain their work activities from the previous week or face potential termination.

The emails came shortly after Musk posted on the social media site X that not responding to the email request would be viewed as a resignation. The directive sent federal employees a three-line email requesting 'approximately 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week' with a deadline of Monday at 11:59 PM.

The sudden mandate has created widespread confusion across federal agencies. Senior officials at multiple agencies, including the National Weather Service and State Department, worked Saturday night to verify the message's authenticity, with some instructing employees not to respond.

This latest directive comes amid a broader push that has already seen thousands of government employees forced out of the federal workforce through firings or buyouts during the first month of Trump's administration. Trump, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference, said 'nobody's ever seen anything like' his administration's sweeping effort to fire thousands of federal employees and shrink the size of government.

The move has drawn sharp criticism from labor representatives. AFGE President Everett Kelley condemned the ultimatum as an example of Trump and Musk's 'utter disdain for federal employees and the critical services they provide to the American people'.

Some federal agencies have begun sending follow-up emails advising staff not to respond over the weekend as they assess the validity of the request and devise proper protocols for responding. 'To be clear, this is irregular, unexpected and warrants further validation by management,' stated one email sent to NOAA employees.