MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have up until February 6 to choose whether to willingly leave their jobs. 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 enabled to take leave and be paid till the end 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 interpretation about what OPM's delayed resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: annunciogratis.net I actually do not consider it a lot an offer. I think it's a demand to resign with an unclear pledge that, possibly, you could be kept in administrative leave status for up to 8 months - however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some individuals have been utilizing the term buyout to explain what this is because there appears to be the deal of administrative leave for up to eight months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would never describe it as a buyout. I think that's a very misleading term to utilize in this situation. When you consider a buyout, there's typically some sort of composed contract or a concrete offer to offer a benefit in exchange for waiving particular rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your recommendations, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we inform them is workout severe care. There are no assurances contained in this email. The only thing I can inform you for particular is that if you change your mind, the firm's probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, wiki.vst.hs-furtwangen.de and you are basically providing up control over a lot.MARTIN: wiki.eqoarevival.com Is there some category of staff member who you believe this might benefit? Maybe they're close to retirement. Is somebody like that might this be an appealing offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most careful since leaving earlier than meant can have serious repercussions, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me simply play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She informed press reporters that this is a bargain for individuals who do not wish to return to the office. Let me simply play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a suggestion to federal employees that they have to return in - to work. And if they don't, then they have the option to resign, and wiki.asexuality.org this administration is really kindly using to pay them for library.kemu.ac.ke 8 months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply - 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 order remains in bad faith, that it's created to get folks who work truly hard to resign. I think it's trying to pull the wool over a lot of individuals's eyes because there are no assurances. And these are people who love their task. They enjoy the objective of the company. They strive. And today, they're dealing with really hard options, especially if they're remote. I indicate, it's really coercive.MARTIN: You say it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're someone who resides in Oregon and has been informed to report to D.C. or else we're going to fire you, they might feel that they have no option than to take this option.MARTIN: Do you prepare for legal challenges just to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be truthful, is so extraordinary that I believe a great deal of us are still attempting to figure out what to do with it. I'm not sure if the deal itself might be challengeable. I think the larger question is the execution of these terms. I'm not knowledgeable about any authority that exists today for OPM to order firms to offer this variety of people administrative leave. So I believe it is really much possibly setting the stage for difficulties because I feel OPM has actually greatly 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 joining us.BERCOVICI: Thank you so much for having me here.

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

NPR transcripts are developed on a rush due date by an NPR specialist. This text might not remain in its last type and might be updated or modified in the future. Accuracy and availability might differ. The reliable record of NPR's shows is the audio record.