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

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: employment Federal employees have up until February 6 to choose whether to willingly leave their tasks. 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 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 analysis about what OPM’s deferred resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually don’t consider it so much an offer. I believe it’s a request 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 actually been utilizing the term buyout to explain what this is since 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 never describe it as a buyout. I think that’s an extremely misleading term to use in this situation. When you consider a buyout, there’s usually some sort of written arrangement or a concrete deal to offer a benefit in exchange for waiving certain rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your suggestions, employment what are you informing them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is exercise severe caution. There are no warranties contained in this email. The only thing I can inform 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 quiting control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some category of employee 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 require to be the most mindful due to the fact that leaving earlier than intended can have serious consequences, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me just play a clip from the White House press secretary, employment Karoline Leavitt. She informed press reporters that this is a bargain for individuals who do not wish to go back to the office. Let me simply play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a suggestion to that they have to return in – to work. And employment if they don’t, then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is really kindly providing to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It just – 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 is in bad faith, that it’s designed to get folks who work really difficult to resign. I think it’s trying to pull the wool over a great deal of people’s eyes since there are no warranties. And these are individuals who enjoy their task. They enjoy the objective of the agency. They strive. And today, they’re facing extremely hard choices, particularly if they’re remote. I suggest, it’s really coercive.MARTIN: You say 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: Do you anticipate legal obstacles just to the offer itself? And employment if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be honest, is so unprecedented that I think a lot of us are still attempting to determine what to do with it. I’m not sure if the deal itself might 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 buy companies to offer this variety of people administrative leave. So I believe it is very much perhaps setting the stage for difficulties due to the fact that I feel OPM has actually 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 so much for joining us.BERCOVICI: Thank you so much for having me here.

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