Federal workers in the United States are divided on returning to the office, according to a new survey.
A Washington Post/Ipsos poll, released earlier this week, found that 49% of federal workers support a five-day workweek and 51% oppose it.
Among those who can do their jobs from home, 85% oppose the mandate, while 70% of those who cannot work remotely support it.
Elon Musk, a close advisor to tech billionaire and Trump, warned federal employees a month ago that those who have not returned to the office will take administrative leave.
“People who ignored the president’s executive order to return to their offices have been warned for over a month,” Musk said on his social platform. “From this week onwards, those who have not yet returned to the office will be on administrative leave.”
His warning reiterated similar sentiments Trump shared earlier.
About 20% of federal workers are looking for new jobs, while 80% are not.
Over 37% of federal employees can work from home, and 46% excluding postal service workers, according to the poll.
One-third of government officials who can work remotely said they were not assigned workspaces or desks in their offices.
This comes as Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) work to cut federal spending and reform the workforce.
Six in six federal employees believe most or all of the president’s executive orders affecting their agency are illegal, and 71% are concerned about the federal government’s functioning amid the cuts, data shows.
Less than half of Trump’s supporters believe the cuts will strengthen the institution’s operations.
The Post/Ipsos poll was conducted between February 28 and March 10 among 614 private workers, including 571 currently employed by the federal government, with an overall error margin of 5.1%.
