Employment Lawyer Discusses what Trump Offer to Federal Employees to Resign Would Do

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal employees have till February 6 to choose whether to willingly leave their jobs. 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 allowed to take leave and be paid till the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment legal representative who represents federal staff members as a large part of her practice, so I asked her for her interpretation about what OPM’s postponed resignation program would in fact mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually do not consider it so much an offer. I believe it’s a request to resign with a vague promise that, potentially, you might be kept in administrative leave status for approximately 8 months – however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have actually been using the term buyout to describe what this is due to the fact that there seems to be the offer of administrative leave for as much as eight months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would never explain it as a buyout. I believe that’s a really deceptive term to use in this situation. When you think about a buyout, there’s normally some sort of written contract or a concrete deal to supply a benefit in exchange for waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: job If customers ask you for your advice, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is workout severe caution. There are no warranties consisted of in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you change your mind, the firm’s most likely not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are basically quiting control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some classification of staff member who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they’re close to retirement. Is somebody like that might this be an attractive offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement require to be the most mindful since leaving earlier than meant can have major consequences, potentially, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline . She told reporters that this is a bargain for job people who don’t desire to go back to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is an idea to federal employees that they need to return in – to work. And if they do not, then they have the option to resign, and this administration is very kindly offering to pay them for 8 months.MARTIN: You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply – in such a way, it breaks my heart that federal workers are being jerked around like this. It sends a signal to me that this return-to-office order remains in bad faith, that it’s designed to get folks who work actually hard to resign. I think it’s attempting to pull the wool over a lot of individuals’s eyes due to the fact that there are no assurances. And these are people who like their job. They like the mission of the company. They strive. And today, job they’re facing really hard choices, particularly if they’re remote. I imply, it’s very coercive.MARTIN: You say it’s coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you’re somebody who resides in Oregon and has been informed to report to D.C. otherwise we’re going to fire you, they might feel that they have no choice than to take this option.MARTIN: Do you expect legal challenges simply to the deal itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be truthful, is so extraordinary that I believe a great deal of us are still trying to determine what to do with it. I’m not exactly sure if the offer itself might be challengeable. I believe the larger concern is the execution of these terms. I’m not aware of any authority that exists today for OPM to buy companies to provide this number of individuals administrative leave. So I believe it is quite possibly setting the stage for challenges due to the fact that I feel OPM has actually vastly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is an employment legal representative with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you a lot for signing up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

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