MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal staff members have up until February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily 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 allowed to depart and be paid until completion of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment lawyer who represents federal staff members as a large part of her practice, so I asked her for her analysis about what OPM's deferred resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I in fact do not consider it so much an offer. I think it's a request to resign with an unclear promise that, potentially, you could be kept in administrative leave status for approximately 8 months - however no guarantees.MARTIN: employment Some individuals have actually been using the term buyout to explain what this is due to the fact that there seems 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 an extremely deceptive term to use in this circumstance. When you believe of a buyout, there's generally some sort of composed arrangement or a concrete deal to provide a benefit in exchange for waiving certain rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If customers ask you for your recommendations, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is exercise severe caution. There are no warranties consisted of in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for particular is that if you alter your mind, the firm'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 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 require to be the most cautious due to the fact that leaving earlier than planned can have serious effects, potentially, employment 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 offer for people who don't want 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 don't, then they have the option to resign, and this administration is extremely generously providing to pay them for 8 months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It just - in a manner, it breaks my heart that federal employees are being jerked around like this. It sends a signal to me that this return-to-office order is in bad faith, employment that it's created to get folks who work really tough to resign. I think it's attempting to pull the wool over a great deal of individuals's eyes due to the fact that there are no guarantees. And these are people who enjoy their task. They love the mission of the company. They strive. And today, they're dealing with very hard options, especially if they're remote. I suggest, it's extremely coercive.MARTIN: You say it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're someone 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 anticipate legal challenges simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This deal, to be truthful, is so unprecedented that I believe a great deal of us are still trying to find out what to do with it. I'm uncertain if the deal itself may be challengeable. I believe the bigger question is the execution of these terms. I'm not familiar with any authority that exists right now for OPM to order companies to offer this variety of individuals administrative leave. So I believe it is quite potentially setting the phase for obstacles due to the fact that I has actually significantly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: 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 joining us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

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