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

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal workers have up until February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily leave their tasks. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, OPM, informed employees 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 take leave and be paid till completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work legal representative who represents federal employees as a large 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 really do not consider it a lot a deal. I believe it’s a demand to resign with an unclear promise that, possibly, you might be kept in administrative leave status for as much as eight months – however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have been using the term buyout to describe what this is since there appears to be the deal of administrative leave for as much as eight months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would definitely not describe it as a buyout. I believe that’s a really misleading term to use in this circumstance. When you believe of a buyout, there’s generally some sort of written agreement or a concrete offer to supply an advantage in exchange for waiving certain rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If customers ask you for your guidance, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is workout severe care. There are no warranties contained in this email. 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 classification of employee who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they’re close to retirement. Is someone like that may this be an appealing offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most cautious 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 Leavitt. She told reporters that this is an excellent deal for people who do not desire to return to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a suggestion to federal workers that they need to return in – to work. And if they do not, then they have the choice to resign, and this administration is really generously offering to pay them for 8 months.MARTIN: You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply – in a manner, 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, employment that it’s developed to get folks who work truly hard to resign. I think it’s trying to pull the wool over a lot of people’s eyes because there are no assurances. And these are people who enjoy their task. They like the mission of the company. They strive. And right now, they’re facing extremely difficult choices, especially if they’re remote. I indicate, it’s extremely coercive.MARTIN: You state it’s coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you’re somebody who resides 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: employment Do you anticipate legal difficulties simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, employment to be truthful, is so unprecedented that I believe a lot of us are still attempting to determine what to do with it. I’m unsure if the deal itself may be challengeable. I think the larger concern is the execution of these terms. I’m not familiar with any authority that exists right now for OPM to order agencies to give this variety of people administrative leave. So I think it is quite perhaps setting the stage for challenges because I feel OPM has greatly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is an employment attorney with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you a lot for us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

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