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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, 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 take leave and be paid till the end of September. Michelle Bercovici is an employment lawyer who represents federal employees as a large part of her practice, so I asked her for her analysis about what OPM's postponed resignation program would really mean.MICHELLE BERCOVICI: I actually don't consider it so much an offer. I think it's a request to resign with a vague promise that, possibly, you might be kept in administrative leave status for up to eight months - but no guarantees.MARTIN: Some individuals have actually been utilizing 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 think that's a very misleading term to use in this circumstance. When you consider a buyout, there's normally some sort of composed arrangement or a concrete offer to provide 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 tell them is exercise severe caution. There are no warranties included in this e-mail. The only thing I can tell you for specific is that if you alter your mind, the firm's probably not going to let you withdraw that resignation, and you are essentially quiting control over a lot.MARTIN: Exists some classification of staff member who you think this might benefit? Maybe they're close to retirement. Is someone like that might this be an ?BERCOVICI: Folks near retirement need to be the most mindful because leaving earlier than intended can have severe effects, 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 individuals who don't want to return to the workplace. Let me just play it.(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)KAROLINE LEAVITT: disgaeawiki.info This is a tip to federal workers that they have to return in - to work. And if they don't, then they have the alternative to resign, and this administration is extremely generously providing to pay them for eight months.MARTIN: You're shaking your head no.BERCOVICI: It simply - in a method, 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 is in bad faith, that it's created to get folks who work actually hard to resign. I think it's attempting to pull the wool over a lot of people's eyes because there are no warranties. And these are individuals who enjoy their task. They like the objective of the company. They work hard. And today, they're dealing with extremely difficult choices, particularly if they're remote. I mean, it's very coercive.MARTIN: You state it's coercive. Because?BERCOVICI: Essentially, if you're someone who lives 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 offer itself? And if so, on what grounds?BERCOVICI: This offer, to be truthful, is so unmatched that I believe a lot of us are still attempting to find out what to do with it. I'm unsure if the offer itself may be challengeable. I believe the larger concern is the execution of these terms. I'm not knowledgeable about any authority that exists right now for OPM to buy companies to provide this variety of people administrative leave. So I believe it is extremely much possibly setting the phase for challenges because I feel OPM has actually significantly surpassed their authority.MARTIN: That is Michelle Bercovici. She is a work attorney 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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