OPM’s Controversial Email Directive Sparks Union Grievance
AFGE Local 17 has filed a Step 3 grievance in response to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) email that demanded employees submit a report of their work activities or face removal from federal service. The grievance alleges multiple violations of the Master Agreement, federal law, and VA’s own core values, citing the VA’s failure to provide clear guidance to employees or consult with the Union before enforcing OPM’s directive.
Table of Contents
On February 22, 2025, federal employees—including those at VA Central Office—received an email from OPM titled “What did you do last week?” The email, marked “High Importance,” ordered employees to respond with a summary of their work activities by February 24 at 11:59 p.m. or risk being deemed as having resigned. That same day, Elon Musk, who has been identified as a “special government employee” by the President, posted on social media:
“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.”
Many VA employees, including those on approved leave or compressed schedules, felt pressured to work off duty to comply with the directive, fearing termination. Instead of clarifying that responses were voluntary, the VA validated the directive in a February 23 email from VA Chief of Staff Chris Syrek, stating:
“On behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, I am informing you that the email is valid.”
AFGE Local 17’s grievance demands that VA formally notify employees that responding to the OPM email was voluntary, cease implementing OPM surveys without Union notification and bargaining, and rescind any discipline related to the email. The grievance also calls for compensation for employees affected by the directive, including proration adjustments and overtime pay for those who worked outside their duty hours. Additionally, Local 17 is demanding an apology for the campaign of intimidation and a commitment from the VA to comply with its contractual and statutory obligations moving forward.
AFGE Local 17 is committed to holding VA accountable and ensuring that no federal employee is unlawfully coerced into compliance with directives that violate labor law and employee rights. We will keep our members informed as this grievance moves forward.
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American Federation of Government Employees
Memorandum
Step 3 Grievance on behalf of bargaining unit employees at VA Central Office
Dated: February 27, 2025
To:
Denise Biaggi-Ayer, Executive Director, Office of Labor Management Relations, Department of Veterans Affairs (“Department,” “Agency,” or “VA”)
Re:
OPM Email – “What did you do last week?”
From:
Douglas E. Massey, Esq., President, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), Local 17, AFL-CIO.
I. Statement of Grievance
This grievance is filed under the provisions of Article 43, Section 7 of the Master Agreement Between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the American Federation of Government Employees (2023) (“Master Agreement”). The grievance concerns an email sent to employees by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which threatened to remove any employee from federal service for failing to respond to an inquiry about their work activities from the previous week. This action—along with the Department’s response and failure to provide appropriate leadership—constitutes multiple violations of the Master Agreement, the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (“Statute”), VA’s own core values, and other provisions of law.
The confusion began on Saturday, February 22, 2025, when employees across the federal government, including bargaining unit employees at VA Central Office, received an email from hr@opm.gov. Prior to January 20, 2025, no such email address existed within the federal government or as an official contact for OPM. The email, marked with “High Importance,” was sent under the purported authority of OPM.
The cryptic title of the email was:
“What did you do last week?”
The body of the email stated:
Please reply to this email with approx. 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week and cc your manager. Please do not send any classified information, links, or attachments. Deadline is this Monday at 11:59 EST.
On the same day, a social media account on X belonging to the platform’s owner, Elon Musk (@elonmusk), posted the following message:
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.
The President has publicly identified Mr. Musk as a “special government employee,” though his exact authority and duties remain unclear. However, he appears to wield significant influence in the current administration, likely due to his billionaire status and ownership of X, a powerful social media platform that has played a substantial role in shaping political discourse. Notably, X has been instrumental in amplifying messages that have supported political figures, including President Trump. Despite this influence, Musk was neither elected by the public nor confirmed by the Senate, yet he appears to dictate policies with profound consequences for federal employees.
Many Local 17 bargaining unit employees were on approved leave or not on duty under their compressed work schedules on Monday, February 24. Despite this, numerous employees felt compelled to work outside of their duty hours in response to the OPM directive, fearing that failure to comply would result in involuntary separation from federal service. As a result, these employees were effectively forced to work without compensation and under duress.
Before February 22, 2025, no notice was published in the Federal Register or elsewhere regarding any OPM program, rule, policy, or regulation requiring all federal employees to submit a report of their work directly to OPM. Likewise, there was no indication that failure to respond to such an email would be interpreted as a resignation from federal employment.
Moreover, OPM has not adhered to the procedural requirements outlined in the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 553, for implementing a new federal employment policy. Some federal agencies—including the FBI—explicitly instructed their employees not to respond to the request. Beyond these procedural violations, OPM has also failed to comply with the Privacy Act, 5 C.F.R. § 552a, by disregarding system of records requirements.
Additionally, under 5 C.F.R. Part 715, any resignation from federal employment must be voluntary. The failure to respond to an unsolicited and unprecedented email from OPM—especially under an arbitrary deadline—does not constitute a voluntary resignation under federal law.
Despite these legal and procedural concerns, the VA failed to provide clear guidance to its employees. Instead, in a department-wide email sent on February 23, 2025, VA Chief of Staff Chris Syrek issued the following statement:
On behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, I am informing you that the email is valid.
At no point did the VA Chief of Staff inform employees that responding to the OPM email was voluntary. Additionally, the Department failed to consult or even notify AFGE before issuing its guidance.
The OPM email and the VA Chief of Staff’s response violate multiple provisions of the Master Agreement, including:
- Article 2 (compliance with federal law and regulations)
- Article 3 (labor-management relations)
- Article 47 (negotiation procedures)
- Article 49 (rights and responsibilities of both parties)
Beyond contractual violations, these actions also violate the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute by dealing directly with bargaining unit employees on conditions of employment and bypassing the Union.
II. Statement of Violation
By failing to advise bargaining unit employees that responding to the OPM email was voluntary and by not providing notice and an opportunity to bargain with the Union, the Department violated:
- 5 U.S.C. § 7116(a)(1) and (a)(5) (unfair labor practices)
- Article 2, 3, 47, and 49 of the Master Agreement
- Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552a
- VA’s Core Values (I-CARE) – 38 CFR § 0.601
III. Statement of Remedy
The Union demands that the Department:
- Formally advise employees that responding to the OPM email was voluntary.
- Cease and desist from implementing OPM surveys without Union notification and bargaining.
- Apologize for the campaign of intimidation.
- Rescind any discipline issued related to the OPM email.
- Compensate affected employees, including proration adjustments and overtime pay.
- Comply with bargaining obligations under Articles 2, 3, 47, and 49 of the Master Agreement.
- Issue a notice to employees acknowledging the failure to notify the Union.
- Pay reasonable attorney’s fees.
The Union reserves the right to pursue additional remedies as necessary.
This document details AFGE Local 17’s formal grievance against the Department of Veterans Affairs regarding the OPM email directive and its alleged violations of labor laws, contractual agreements, and VA policies.
