MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal workers have until February 6 to decide whether to willingly leave their jobs. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, OPM, notified workers 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 up until completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work 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 really mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I in fact don't consider it so much a deal. I think it's a request to resign with an unclear promise that, potentially, you could be kept in administrative leave status for up to eight months - but no guarantees.MARTIN: Some people have been using the term buyout to describe what this is since there seems to be the deal of administrative leave for as much as 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 generally some sort of written agreement or a concrete offer to offer an advantage in exchange for waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your guidance, what are you informing them?BERCOVICI: First thing we inform them is workout severe care. There are no guarantees included in this email. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you change your mind, the agency's most likely not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are basically providing up control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some classification of worker 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 need to be the most careful due to the fact that leaving earlier than intended can have severe effects, potentially, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She told press reporters that this is a bargain for people who do not wish to go back to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a suggestion to federal workers that they have to return in - to work. And if they do not, then they have the option to resign, and this administration is very generously providing to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply - in such a way, it breaks my heart that federal staff members are being jerked around like this. It sends out a signal to me that this return-to-office order is in bad faith, that it's developed to get folks who work truly hard to resign. I believe it's trying to pull the wool over a lot of individuals's eyes due to the fact that there are no guarantees. And these are people who like their task. They like the mission of the agency. They strive. And right now, they're dealing with extremely hard options, particularly if they're remote. I suggest, it's really 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: Do you anticipate legal difficulties simply to the deal itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, to be honest, is so extraordinary that I think a lot of us are still attempting to determine what to do with it. I'm not sure if the offer itself might be challengeable. I think the larger concern is the execution of these terms. I'm not aware of any authority that exists today for OPM to buy firms to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I believe it is quite possibly setting the stage for challenges because I feel OPM has actually significantly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: employment That is Michelle Bercovici. She is an employment legal representative with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you a lot for signing up with us.BERCOVICI: Thank you so much for having me here.

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