I Had to Respond to an EMail

[Callen]

Why do so many people apparently find it "demeaning" to report on what they did? Pretty much every desk job I've ever had I've had to report on every minute I was at work. 30 minutes doing this, 1.5 hours doing that, etc... I've only ever worked in the private sector.

The problem isn't the reporting, it's who the reporting is to and the purpose of the reporting. The reporting should be up the direct line of management . There is no way in hell that the Doge kids are in a position to understand or evaluate the activities of every employee in every department yet they use the information to decide what is worthwhile and what isn't, who to fire and who to keep. Like everything else with Doge, it isn't their goal that is wrong, it's the way they are going about it. The result is chaos, law suits, disruption and rehiring. The sad fact is they will end of sabotaging the very thing they are trying to accomplish.

 

[NOLA Dude]

This week I had to respond to an email from Pete Hegseth, our Secretary of Defense. The email requested that I provide 5 bullet points about what I accomplished in my DOD civilian job last week.

I found this completely demeaning to everyone who is serving our country. I served this nation for over 20 years in the US Army, retiring as a Master Sergeant and I now work for the Department of Defense. Meanwhile, our Secretary of Defense never commanded a unit greater than a Company, but is serving as Trump and Musk's lap dog.

I realize that this is nothing but political theater, since many Trump supporters literally hate government workers, but the vast majority of government workers work hard and serve this nation, but also need their job to provide for themselves and their families. Pay for government workers is less than 3% of the budget. I really worry about these people, who are affected by this garbage.

Fortunately I don't need the job. I tried the retirement thing, but got bored and went back to work. So, in case anyone reads them, which I doubt, my 5 bullet comments were:

-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you

It's not a high bar. We think there are a number of people on the government payroll who are dead or not real people that are collecting paychecks. We're trying to figure out if people are real, if they're alive, and if they can write an e-mail. I think the American public would have at least that expectation of someone in the public sector."

 

[WorldWatcher]

It's not a high bar. We think there are a number of people on the government payroll who are dead or not real people that are collecting paychecks. We're trying to figure out if people are real, if they're alive, and if they can write an e-mail. I think the American public would have at least that expectation of someone in the public sector."

Psst - if someone can get a dead body through the hiring process or they died after being hired and someone is keeping them alive in the system…

You don’t think if they can do that they wouldn’t be able to access the dead persons government email to respond?



WW

 

[Sven Karma]

The 'deep state' is actually a conspiracy of 6 feet under dead people.

 

[NOLA Dude]

Psst - if someone can get a dead body through the hiring process or they died after being hired and someone is keeping them alive in the system…

Most likely it wasn't a dead person who was hired, but someone who died later and someone is still collecting that money.

You don’t think if they can do that they wouldn’t be able to access the dead persons government email to respond?



WW

Should be easy to do for anyone right?

 

[LouC]

This week I had to respond to an email from Pete Hegseth, our Secretary of Defense. The email requested that I provide 5 bullet points about what I accomplished in my DOD civilian job last week.

I found this completely demeaning to everyone who is serving our country. I served this nation for over 20 years in the US Army, retiring as a Master Sergeant and I now work for the Department of Defense. Meanwhile, our Secretary of Defense never commanded a unit greater than a Company, but is serving as Trump and Musk's lap dog.

I realize that this is nothing but political theater, since many Trump supporters literally hate government workers, but the vast majority of government workers work hard and serve this nation, but also need their job to provide for themselves and their families. Pay for government workers is less than 3% of the budget. I really worry about these people, who are affected by this garbage.

Fortunately I don't need the job. I tried the retirement thing, but got bored and went back to work. So, in case anyone reads them, which I doubt, my 5 bullet comments were:

-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you

Just hope Pete doesn't show up at your office door with a large tube of K-Y Jelly and a 'come hither' smile on his face.

 

[The AntiDonald]

And now that I got started - wtf is with firing people by email?

Terribly cruel way to handle an action that has a life changing impact on the terminated employee.

Musk/Trump are cowards. I have had to fire many people over the years and it's one of the hardest things a business owner/manager has to do.

 

[Josie]

What's funny is that if this email came from an administration on the left, you (universal people-of-the-left "you") would gladly answer it. And the die-hard Trumpers would be the ones saying "**** you". Gotta love politics.

 

[AConcernedCitizen]

Pretty much every desk job I've ever had I've had to report on every minute I was at work. 30 minutes doing this, 1.5 hours doing that, etc...

Tells us you were on a PIP without telling us you were on a PIP.

 

[Old 'N Chill]

This week I had to respond to an email from Pete Hegseth, our Secretary of Defense. The email requested that I provide 5 bullet points about what I accomplished in my DOD civilian job last week.

I found this completely demeaning to everyone who is serving our country. I served this nation for over 20 years in the US Army, retiring as a Master Sergeant and I now work for the Department of Defense. Meanwhile, our Secretary of Defense never commanded a unit greater than a Company, but is serving as Trump and Musk's lap dog.

I realize that this is nothing but political theater, since many Trump supporters literally hate government workers, but the vast majority of government workers work hard and serve this nation, but also need their job to provide for themselves and their families. Pay for government workers is less than 3% of the budget. I really worry about these people, who are affected by this garbage.

Fortunately I don't need the job. I tried the retirement thing, but got bored and went back to work. So, in case anyone reads them, which I doubt, my 5 bullet comments were:

-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you
-**** you

Much respect. Thank you for your service. Sorry you are being annoyed by this insanity, and disappointed it hasn't been stopped by now.

 

[armycowboy]

Here's the thing that the dumbasses haven't figured out yet.

Tons of the responses to the email will never be read.

Assholes

Very few will ever be read. Over 2 million people work for the federal government. Nobody is reading that many emails.

 

[MamboDervish]

Why didn't you quit rather than putting up with being demanded like that? Where is your self respect?

Who are you to judge?

Do you think the gov should employ goldbricks?

So far they appear to be strengthening the economy. They are expanding the private sector workforce and shrinking the public sector simultaneously. That is economically healthy.

You are delusional.

 

[ElChupacabra]

Most likely it wasn't a dead person who was hired, but someone who died later and someone is still collecting that money.

Should be easy to do for anyone right?

Lest we forget the last time Musk made claims about dead people receiving things. I mean, how is it someone from the tech sector has to waste time with receiving emails from employees as a "pulse check" when there are far better and efficient ways to do this.

 

[Allan]

I mean, how is it someone from the tech sector has to waste time with receiving emails from employees as a "pulse check" when there are far better and efficient ways to do this.

Presumably the government has some type of performance review - establishing measurable goals and meeting with employees to discuss how they did.

That's how you do it.

This "name 5 things you did last week" nonsense is going to illicit meaningless responses. A more useful question would be "what will you accomplish in the next 12 months?" (to exceed budget, make the department more efficient, improve service etc).

 

[ElChupacabra]

Presumably the government has some type of performance review - establishing measurable goals and meeting with employees to discuss how they did.

That's how you do it.

If you want to gauge someone's performance that's one way, which is why in an earlier post I mentioned about reviewing an agency's methodologies on tracking performance is more efficient than this performative nonsense.

This "name 5 things you did last week" nonsense is going to illicit meaningless responses. A more useful question would be "what will you accomplish in the next 12 months?" (to exceed budget, make the department more efficient, improve service etc).

What's laughable is the framing of this being to weed out people receiving checks who aren't employed. This would be the least efficient way to do it, and it doesn't weed out scammers. If such a scam does exist, then the "pulse" Musk would be receiving is that of a scammer. There are far better ways to do it on the data side, and Musk knows this. This kind of nonsense is done just to send a message to workers, the motivation which I also mentioned in a previous post and based on Vought's comments on Federal workers.

 

[armycowboy]

Presumably the government has some type of performance review - establishing measurable goals and meeting with employees to discuss how they did.

That's how you do it.

This "name 5 things you did last week" nonsense is going to illicit meaningless responses. A more useful question would be "what will you accomplish in the next 12 months?" (to exceed budget, make the department more efficient, improve service etc).

You're exactly right about the performance reviews and they're conducted by the employees immediate supervisor, pretty much the same way it's done in the civilian sector. I don't know of any private companies requiring employees email the CEO of their weekly accomplishments.

 

[ElChupacabra]

You're exactly right about the performance reviews and they're conducted by the employees immediate supervisor, pretty much the same way it's done in the civilian sector. I don't know of any private companies requiring employees email the CEO of their weekly accomplishments.

Especially large ones where this is just not feasible nor effective. In large organizations there's a very high chance the CEO doesn't even know what some roles are, let alone being able to determine listed accomplishments have value or not. In small organizations this might be different, and start-ups come to mind, but the Federal government is not that kind of work environment.

 

[Allan]

You're exactly right about the performance reviews and they're conducted by the employees immediate supervisor, pretty much the same way it's done in the civilian sector. I don't know of any private companies requiring employees email the CEO of their weekly accomplishments.

A book I used to give all new managers is titled The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins.

New managers are very gung ho and want to make changes early on.

Doing so before understanding their department, it's people and culture, and the company can result in errors that damage the new manager's reputation. Especially if a decision has to be reversed (as Doge has had to do repeatedly).

So Watkins' advice is to spend the first 90 days gaining an understanding of the environment and building good relationships with the immediate team and company resource departments.

Elon could benefit from this book. Not only is he trying to fix stuff that might not be broken, he's ****ing up stuff that's probably not broken.

 

[SCrider]

I've never worked in government but I've worked closely with all 3 levels of government in Canada, the US and China.

It mystifies me why government employees are regarded as less dedicated, hard working and effective as the private sector.

Government employees are just like the rest of us. They didn't suddenly all become sloths just because they work for a government department.

GOP bullshit has created that stigma about government employees. That and road workers seemingly standing around creating traffic jams....

 

[CaughtInThe]

Very few will ever be read. Over 2 million people work for the federal government. Nobody is reading that many emails.

They're probably going to use software to pick out a few responses from minority federal workers and have somebody read those.

And then fire them no matter what the response.

 

[NOLA Dude]

Lest we forget the last time Musk made claims about dead people receiving things. I mean, how is it someone from the tech sector has to waste time with receiving emails from employees as a "pulse check" when there are far better and efficient ways to do this.

And yet nobody has ever attempted it before. Why is that?

 

[Emlee]

You're exactly right about the performance reviews and they're conducted by the employees immediate supervisor, pretty much the same way it's done in the civilian sector. I don't know of any private companies requiring employees email the CEO of their weekly accomplishments.

Musk wouldn’t even be considered the company’s CEO, he’d be considered just an outside advisor with no real authority to demand anything.

That’s one of the most hilarious yet pathetic things about this and Musk.

Do people really believe that federal workers don’t all have immediate supervisors and above supervisors are managers?
They really believe that no one would know if a federal worker died without Musk’s demand to send him five things they’ve done?
They really believe that no one knows what federal workers are doing without Musk’s demands?

Musk says things such as “we believe” such and such is happening, which isn’t really based on any actual evidence or knowledge, oftentimes he just parrots whatever some random person, who also doesn’t know what they’re looking at, tweets him.

 

[Allan]

GOP bullshit has created that stigma about government employees. That and road workers seemingly standing around creating traffic jams....

They are still probably more productive than the people bitching about them.

There have been a lot of studies on worker productivity and the findings from most of them are that employees are actively engaged in company business for slightly less than 3 hours in an 8 hour day.

There are a lot of exceptions of course but the point is that no one in the private sector delivers perfect performance. No one has any business pointing at government workers with accusations of "waste, fraud and abuse".

 

[phoenix2020]

Sounds like you speak of this with first hand knowledge.

Yes, I've had to put employees on PIPs and ask them to send me weekly or daily summaries of the work they did. Typically when it comes to that, they're not more than a month away from being terminated.

 

[trouble13]

Who are you to judge?


You are delusional.

Do you think the left has a monopoly on being judgemental and nobody has any right to judge your lot