Employment Lawyer Discusses what Trump Offer to Federal Employees to Resign Would Do
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal employees have up until February 6 to decide whether to willingly leave their jobs. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, OPM, notified employees 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 depart and employment be paid until the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work legal representative who represents federal employees as a large part of her practice, employment so I asked her for her interpretation about what OPM’s delayed resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually do not consider it so much an offer. I think it’s a demand to resign with a vague guarantee that, possibly, you might be kept in administrative leave status for as much as 8 months – however no .MARTIN: Some individuals have been utilizing the term buyout to describe what this is because there appears to be the offer of administrative leave for as much as eight months if you take this deal. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would absolutely not describe it as a buyout. I believe that’s an extremely deceptive term to utilize in this circumstance. When you think of a buyout, there’s normally some sort of written arrangement or a concrete deal to supply an advantage in exchange for employment waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If customers ask you for your guidance, what are you informing them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is workout extreme caution. There are no assurances contained in this email. The only thing I can tell you for certain is that if you alter your mind, the company’s most likely not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are basically offering up control over a lot.MARTIN: Exists some classification of staff member who you think this might benefit? Maybe they’re close to retirement. Is somebody like that might this be an attractive offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most mindful because leaving earlier than intended can have severe repercussions, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me just play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She told press reporters that this is a great deal for individuals who do not wish to go back to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a recommendation to federal workers that they have to return in – to work. And if they do not, employment then they have the option to resign, and this administration is extremely kindly using to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: employment You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It just – in a way, it breaks my heart that federal workers are being jerked around like this. It sends out a signal to me that this return-to-office order remains in bad faith, that it’s developed to get folks who work truly hard to resign. I believe it’s attempting to pull the wool over a lot of people’s eyes since there are no guarantees.
And these are people who enjoy their job. They love the mission of the agency.
They work hard. And right now, they’re facing very tough choices, particularly if they’re remote.
I imply, it’s really coercive.MARTIN: You say it’s coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you’re somebody who lives in Oregon and has been told to report to D.C. or else 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 offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be truthful, is so unprecedented that I think a great deal of us are still trying to figure out what to do with it. I’m uncertain if the offer itself might be challengeable. I think the bigger concern is the execution of these terms. I’m not mindful of any authority that exists right now for OPM to buy agencies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is extremely much possibly setting the stage for obstacles due to the fact that I feel OPM has significantly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici.
She is an employment lawyer with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you a lot for joining us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for employment having me here.
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