Washington: More than one million federal employees responded to an email requesting details of their work activities, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt confirmed during a briefing. Leavitt participated in the initiative herself, noting the simplicity of the request, which required listing five activities from the previous week. However, less than half of the nation's 2.3 million federal workforce complied with the request.

According to Anadolu Agency, the email initiative was announced last week by Elon Musk, who oversees the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). This initiative is part of the Trump administration's efforts to downsize the government, urging federal employees to account for their work activities. Despite this, several key agencies, including the Justice Department, the FBI, and the Pentagon, advised their employees to disregard Musk's email.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) advised federal agencies to handle the situation internally, allowing each department to decide how to manage the request. Leavitt emphasized that agency heads would determine the best practices for their employees, advising that federal workers should respond unless otherwise directed by their agencies.

Musk announced that employees who did not respond to the email would have "another chance" to comply. However, he warned that failure to respond a second time could lead to termination.