MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have until February 6 to choose 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 enabled to depart and be paid up until the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work legal representative who represents federal staff members as a big part of her practice, so I asked her for her analysis about what OPM's postponed resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually do not consider it a lot an offer. I believe it's a demand to resign with a vague promise that, possibly, you could be kept in administrative leave status for up to eight months - however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have actually been using the term buyout to describe what this is due to the fact that there appears to be the offer of administrative leave for up to eight months if you take this deal. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would never describe it as a buyout. I believe that's a really deceptive term to use in this circumstance. When you think of a buyout, there's usually some sort of written contract or a concrete deal to offer an advantage in exchange for waiving specific 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 extreme care. There are no assurances included in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you change 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 believe this might benefit? Maybe they're close to retirement. Is someone like that might this be an attractive offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most cautious due to the fact that leaving earlier than planned can have serious effects, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She told reporters that this is a great deal for people who do not wish to go back to the office. Let me simply 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 choice to resign, and this administration is really generously offering to pay them for 8 months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: trademarketclassifieds.com 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 remains in bad faith, that it's designed to get folks who work truly hard to resign. I think it's attempting to pull the wool over a lot of people's eyes since there are no warranties. And fillboards.com these are people who love their job. They love the objective of the agency. They strive. And right now, they're dealing with extremely hard options, particularly if they're remote. I imply, it's very 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 prepare for legal difficulties simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, to be honest, is so unmatched that I think a great deal of us are still trying to determine what to do with it. I'm unsure if the deal itself might be challengeable. I believe the larger question is the execution of these terms. I'm not familiar with any authority that exists right now for OPM to buy firms to give this number of individuals administrative leave. So I believe it is extremely much potentially setting the stage for difficulties due to the fact that I feel OPM has significantly exceeded 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 up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

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