Reply to Trump buyout: resign by Feb 6, get paid until Sept 30

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[quote=Anonymous][quote]Employees who accept the offer will “promptly have their duties reassigned or eliminated,” according to a guidance memo published by the O.P.M. on Tuesday. Workers will then be placed on paid administrative leave until the end of September, or an earlier resignation date of their choosing.

Employees who resign will not be expected to work, except in rare cases determined by agencies, according to a question-and-answer page on O.P.M.’s website. Agency heads can require some employees to continue working for some time before they are placed on leave.

[b]It is unclear what authority the Trump administration has to offer paid administrative leave to effectively the entire federal civilian work force. Under the law, no employee can be on administrative leave for more than 10 days in a year — let alone more than seven months.

Under the Homeland Security Act, agencies that are downsizing or reorganizing can offer federal workers $25,000 in exchange for their resignation, known as a Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment. In many cases, though, the payments proposed in the O.P.M.’s email Tuesday would far exceed that sum.[/b]

Other actions mentioned in the email to federal employees could run afoul of civil service laws, as well as union contracts. Anticipating those limits, the O.P.M. said in the email that the effort to cull the federal work force would be pursued “to the extent permitted under relevant collective-bargaining agreements.”

A spokesperson for the Office of Personnel Management said some workers would be exempt from the offer, including military personnel, Postal Service workers, immigration officials and certain national security officials. Agencies can also carve out exceptions for specific positions.

Still, almost every facet of the government could be significantly affected by mass resignations, and a culling of the federal work force would have wide-reaching impacts on the lives of many Americans.

Regular activities like traveling, renewing passports or filing for a tax return could be delayed or disrupted. The operation of national parks and museums, and the administration of benefits like Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ care and food stamps could also be affected. Regulators and inspectors for food, water, drugs and workplace safety could also leave the government.

Among the government employees who could turn in their resignations are skilled researchers and doctors; environmental, nuclear and rocket scientists; and meteorologists at the National Weather Service. Depending on how the Trump administration defines “national security,” officers at law enforcement agencies like the F.B.I. and Drug Enforcement Administration may also resign.

The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union of federal employees, representing over 800,000 workers, quickly condemned the move.

“There are more Americans than ever who rely on government services,” said Everett Kelley, the president of the union. “Purging the federal government of dedicated career civil servants will have vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government.”[/quote][/quote]

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