MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal workers have 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 allowed to depart and be paid till completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work lawyer 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 don’t consider it so much a deal. I believe 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 individuals have been utilizing the term buyout to explain what this is since there seems to be the deal of administrative leave for akropolistravel.com up to 8 months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: I would definitely not describe it as a buyout. I believe that’s a very misleading term to in this circumstance. When you think about a buyout, there’s usually some sort of written arrangement or a concrete offer to offer an advantage in exchange for waiving specific rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If customers ask you for your recommendations, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we inform them is workout severe caution. There are no guarantees contained in this email. The only thing I can tell you for certain is that if you alter your mind, the firm’s most likely not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are basically quiting control over a lot.MARTIN: Is there some classification of employee who you think this might benefit? Maybe they’re close to retirement. Is someone like that may this be an appealing offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most mindful because leaving earlier than intended can have major consequences, possibly, on their benefits.MARTIN: Let me just play a clip from the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt. She informed press reporters that this is a good offer for individuals who don’t wish to return to the workplace. Let me simply play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: This is a recommendation to federal employees that they need to return in - to work. And if they do not, then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is very kindly providing to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: You’re shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It just - in a manner, 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 remains in bad faith, that it’s created to get folks who work truly difficult to resign. I think it’s trying to pull the wool over a great deal of people’s eyes because there are no guarantees. And these are individuals who like their job. They like the mission of the company. They strive. And right now, they’re dealing with really hard choices, particularly if they’re remote. I mean, it’s really coercive.MARTIN: You state it’s coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you’re somebody who lives in Oregon and has been informed to report to D.C. otherwise 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 sincere, is so extraordinary that I believe a lot of us are still attempting to find out what to do with it. I’m not sure if the deal itself might be challengeable. I believe the bigger question is the execution of these terms. I’m not familiar with any authority that exists today for OPM to purchase companies to give this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I think it is extremely much perhaps setting the stage for obstacles due to the fact that I feel OPM has actually greatly exceeded their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is a work lawyer 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.

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