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

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal workers have till February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily 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 permitted to depart and be paid until completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment legal representative who represents federal employees as a big part of her practice, so I asked her for her analysis about what OPM’s delayed resignation program would in fact mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I really do not consider it a lot a deal. I believe it’s a demand to resign with a vague promise that, potentially, you could be kept in administrative leave status for up to eight months – however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have been utilizing the term buyout to explain what this is because there seems to be the deal of administrative leave for approximately eight months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would never describe it as a buyout. I believe that’s a really deceptive term to use in this situation. When you believe of a buyout, there’s typically some sort of written arrangement or a concrete deal to provide an advantage in exchange for waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your advice, what are you informing them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is care. There are no guarantees consisted of in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you change your mind, the company’s probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are basically quiting control over a lot.MARTIN: Exists some category of staff member who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they’re close to retirement. Is somebody like that may this be an attractive offer?BERCOVICI: referall.us Folks near retirement require to be the most cautious since leaving earlier than meant can have major consequences, potentially, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me just play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She informed reporters that this is a great deal for people who don’t wish to return to the office. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a suggestion to federal employees that they need to return in – to work. And if they do not, then they have the choice to resign, and this administration is very kindly using to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It just – in a manner, it breaks my heart that federal staff members 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 created to get folks who work really hard to resign. I believe it’s trying to pull the wool over a great deal of individuals’s eyes since there are no guarantees. And these are individuals who like their job. They enjoy the mission of the firm. They strive. And right now, they’re facing extremely hard choices, especially if they’re remote. I imply, it’s extremely coercive.MARTIN: You say it’s coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you’re someone who lives 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 prepare for legal obstacles just to the deal itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be sincere, is so extraordinary that I believe a lot of us are still trying to figure out what to do with it. I’m uncertain if the offer itself might be challengeable. I believe the larger question is the execution of these terms. I’m not knowledgeable about any authority that exists today for OPM to buy companies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is quite potentially setting the phase for obstacles due to the fact that I feel OPM has vastly exceeded 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 a lot for having me here.

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