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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: Federal workers have until February 6 to choose whether to voluntarily 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 permitted to depart and be paid till the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is a work legal representative who represents federal staff members as a large part of her practice, so I asked her for her analysis about what OPM's postponed resignation program would actually mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I in fact don't consider it a lot a deal. I think it's a request to resign with an unclear pledge that, potentially, you might be kept in administrative leave status for approximately 8 months - however no guarantees.MARTIN: Some individuals have 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 approximately eight months if you take this offer. So is it a buyout?BERCOVICI: akropolistravel.com I would definitely not describe it as a buyout. I believe that's a very misleading term to use in this scenario. When you think about a buyout, there's typically some sort of written agreement or a concrete offer to supply a benefit in exchange for waiving specific rights. That is not the case here.MARTIN: If clients ask you for your suggestions, what are you telling them?BERCOVICI: First thing we tell them is exercise extreme care. There are no assurances contained in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for certain is that if you change your mind, the agency's probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are essentially 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 someone like that might this be an attractive offer?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement require to be the most careful because leaving earlier than meant can have severe 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 bargain for people who do not wish to return to the office. Let me simply play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) LEAVITT: This is an idea to federal workers that they have to return in - to work. And if they don't, then they have the choice to resign, and this administration is really kindly using to pay them for 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 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 hard to resign. I think it's trying to pull the wool over a lot of people's eyes because there are no warranties. And these are people who love their job. They enjoy the mission of the firm. They work hard. And today, they're facing really difficult choices, particularly if they're remote. I indicate, it's extremely coercive.MARTIN: You say it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're somebody who resides 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 option than to take this option.MARTIN: Do you anticipate legal obstacles simply to the offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, to be truthful, is so extraordinary that I believe a lot of us are still attempting to determine what to do with it. I'm unsure if the deal itself may be challengeable. I believe the larger question is the execution of these terms. I'm not knowledgeable about any authority that exists today for OPM to order companies to offer this number of people administrative leave. So I believe it is very much possibly setting the phase for difficulties since I feel OPM has vastly exceeded their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is a work attorney with the Alden Law Group here in Washington, D.C. Thank you so much for joining us.BERCOVICI: Thank you a lot for having me here.

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