MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have till February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily leave their tasks. 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 take leave and be paid up until completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment attorney who represents federal workers as a big part of her practice, so I asked her for her interpretation about what OPM's deferred resignation program would really mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually don't consider it so much an offer. I think it's a request to resign with a vague guarantee that, possibly, you could be kept in administrative leave status for up to 8 months - but no guarantees.MARTIN: Some individuals have been using the term buyout to describe what this is since there seems to be the offer of administrative leave for approximately eight 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 deceptive term to use in this situation. When you consider a buyout, there's generally some sort of composed contract 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 inform them is exercise extreme care. There are no warranties consisted of in this e-mail. The only thing I can inform you for specific is that if you change your mind, the agency's probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are essentially providing up control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some classification of staff member who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they're close to retirement. Is someone like that might this be an appealing offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most mindful since leaving earlier than meant can have severe repercussions, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She informed reporters that this is a bargain for individuals who don't desire to go back to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is an idea to federal workers that they need to return in - to work. And if they do not, employment then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is very 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 staff members 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 developed to get folks who work actually hard to resign. I think it's attempting to pull the wool over a lot of individuals's eyes since there are no assurances. And these are people who enjoy their job. They love the mission of the company. They work hard. And today, they're dealing with extremely difficult 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 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 just to the deal itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be honest, is so extraordinary that I believe a great deal of us are still attempting to find out 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 knowledgeable about any authority that exists today for OPM to purchase agencies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is extremely much perhaps setting the phase for challenges since I feel OPM has significantly exceeded their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is a work attorney with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you so much for signing up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you so much for having me here.

Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights booked. Visit our website terms of use and consents pages at www.npr.org for further information.

NPR transcripts are produced on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not remain in its final kind and may be updated or modified in the future. Accuracy and accessibility might differ. The reliable record of NPR's shows is the audio record.