Atlanta federal employees return to office amid confusion over controversial email
Federal employees head back into the office
Thousands of federal employees headed back to work, but many say they are still operating under a cloud of confusion. Over the weekend, DOGE had the office of personnel management sent out an email that raised lots of eyebrows. It ordered employees to list five things they accomplished last week or face resignation.
ATLANTA - Thousands of federal employees returned to the office in Atlanta on Monday after President Donald Trump's return-to-office mandate and a warning from Elon Musk.
What we know:
The move is expected to boost the downtown economy.
But, many employees say they were confused after receiving an email from the Office of Personnel Management that told them to list five accomplishments from the previous week, or be fired.
RELATED STORY: Elon Musk says federal employees must email ‘what they got done last week’
Managers told employees to "pause" on complying with that email.
What we don't know:
It's unclear how a district judge will rule on temporary restraining orders (TROs) filed by fired federal employees to get their jobs back.
We also don't know whether employees will ultimately have to comply with the email.
Musk orders federal workers to respond to email
Elon Musk's latest move to downsize the government came via email. Over the weekend, he instructed federal workers to list the tasks they worked on during the week or risk being fired.
"There is currently a lawsuit going on right now by a number of the unions against the Office of Personnel Management - OPM - which is what DOGE is kind of using as their tool for sending these emails, and what the plaintiffs there are saying is 'No, you don't have the legal authority. It's vested elsewhere,'" attorney Alex Weatherby told FOX 5's Aungelique Proctor.
RELATED: Elon Musk email to federal employees met with resistance
What's next:
Rank and File employees who live within 50 miles of the CDC will return to work on March 17 and employees who live 50 miles or more outside the CDC will return on April 28.
Many employees say there are not enough offices for all federal workers to return to the building.
Employees say there is still chaos, uncertainty and fear in their future. They say things are changing by the day.
The Source: Aungelique Proctor talked with several federal employees and Attorney Alex Weatherby about the emails and returning to work.