GitLab

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have till February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily leave their jobs. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, OPM, 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 till the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment attorney 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 really do not consider it so much a deal. I think it's a request to resign with an unclear promise that, possibly, you could be kept in administrative leave status for approximately eight months - however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some individuals have actually been utilizing the term buyout to describe what this is since there seems to be the offer of administrative leave for approximately 8 months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would definitely not explain it as a buyout. I believe that's an extremely deceptive term to use in this scenario. When you think about a buyout, there's normally some sort of composed contract or a concrete deal to supply an advantage in exchange for waiving certain rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If customers ask you for your recommendations, employment what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we inform them is workout extreme care. There are no warranties consisted of in this email. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you change your mind, the firm's probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are essentially offering up control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some category 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 require to be the most cautious 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, Karoline Leavitt. She informed reporters that this is a bargain for individuals who do not desire to return to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a tip to federal employees that they need to return in - to work. And if they don't, then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is extremely generously 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 employees 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 truly difficult to resign. I believe it's trying to pull the wool over a great deal of individuals's eyes since there are no assurances. And these are individuals who love their job. They enjoy the mission of the firm. They strive. And today, they're facing really difficult choices, particularly if they're remote. I mean, it's really coercive.MARTIN: You state it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're someone who lives in Oregon and has been told 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 anticipate legal obstacles simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be honest, is so unprecedented that I think a great deal of us are still trying to find out what to do with it. I'm unsure if the offer itself might be challengeable. I think the larger concern is the execution of these terms. I'm not knowledgeable about any authority that exists right now for OPM to buy companies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is really much potentially setting the stage for obstacles since I feel OPM has actually significantly 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 a lot for signing up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights scheduled. Visit our website regards to usage and authorizations pages at www.npr.org for more info.

NPR transcripts are produced on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not remain in its last type and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability might vary. The authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio record.