MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have up until February 6 to choose whether to willingly leave their tasks. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, OPM, informed workers on Tuesday that if they hand in their resignation by next Thursday - that's less than a week from now - most will be enabled to take leave and be paid until of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment lawyer who represents federal staff members as a big part of her practice, so I asked her for her interpretation about what OPM's delayed resignation program would in fact mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I in fact do not consider it so much a deal. I think it's a request to resign with an unclear guarantee that, possibly, you might be kept in administrative leave status for as much as 8 months - but no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have actually been utilizing the term buyout to describe what this is due to the fact that there appears to be the offer of administrative leave for approximately 8 months if you take this deal. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would definitely not describe it as a buyout. I think that's a very misleading term to utilize in this circumstance. When you consider a buyout, there's generally some sort of written arrangement or a concrete offer to supply an advantage in exchange for employment waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your guidance, what are you informing them?BERCOVICI: First thing we inform them is workout severe caution. There are no warranties contained in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for certain is that if you change your mind, the agency's most likely not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are essentially offering up control over a lot.MARTIN: Exists some classification of worker who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they're close to retirement. Is somebody like that might this be an appealing offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most mindful because leaving earlier than planned can have severe repercussions, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She told press reporters that this is a good offer for individuals who do not wish to go back to the office. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is an idea to federal workers that they have to return in - to work. And if they do not, employment then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is very kindly using to pay them for employment eight months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply - in a method, it breaks my heart that federal employees are being jerked around like this. It sends a signal to me that this return-to-office order is in bad faith, that it's developed to get folks who work actually tough to resign. I think it's trying to pull the wool over a great deal of individuals's eyes due to the fact that there are no warranties. And these are people who love their job. They like the objective of the firm. They strive. And today, they're dealing with really tough options, especially if they're remote. I mean, it's very coercive.MARTIN: You state it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're somebody who lives in Oregon and has been told to report to D.C. otherwise we're going to fire you, they might feel that they have no option than to take this option.MARTIN: Do you expect legal difficulties simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, to be honest, is so extraordinary that I think a lot of us are still trying to figure out what to do with it. I'm unsure if the offer itself may be challengeable. I believe the larger question is the execution of these terms. I'm not aware of any authority that exists right now for OPM to order agencies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is very much potentially setting the phase for difficulties since I feel OPM has greatly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is a work legal representative with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you so much for signing up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you so much for having me here.
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Employment Lawyer Discusses what Trump Offer to Federal Employees to Resign Would Do
Amie Beet edited this page 2025-02-10 06:38:39 +01:00