Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: Each year, federal employee organizations propose the elimination of the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), and each year approximately 350-400 members of Congress cosponsor legislation to abolish this discriminatory law, but that’s where it ends. I feel the GPO law is also discriminatory as it prevents retirees from collecting both their federal annuity and any Social Security benefit based on their spouse’s work. Have the GPO…

Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) has the responsibility of investigating Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP) complaints. What is the rate PPPs are found, and what resolutions can OSC negotiate when a PPP has occurred? The issue is in regard to promotions and appointments, concerning willfully obstructing competition for employment, giving an unauthorized preference or advantage and avoiding veterans’ preference. Can an OSC complaint for a PPP and a union grievance…

Federal workplaces are inconsistent on how and when they grant or deny sick leave. Some agencies grant any sick leave request, and some might deny or challenge a request when the employee has a clear right to it. Paid time off is authorized: • For medical incapacitation of the employee or a family member. • To arrange or to attend a funeral of a family member. • For the adoption of a child. • For medical appointments for the employee or a family member. • To care for a family member with a serious health condition. • Because someone has…

Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: A fellow employee is routinely late to work and takes extremely long lunch breaks (up to 3 hours). What is a supervisor’s responsibility in terms of verifying that an employee actually works an 8-hour day? A: You don’t know the full story. A supervisor who knowingly certifies a false time card can be disciplined. But something also may be going on here. Bill Bransford is managing partner of Shaw, Bransford…

Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: I am eligible to retire but my agency says I owe the government $60,000 because I left federal service several times years ago and took out my retirement accumulation. No one ever told me I’d have to pay the money back if I returned to federal service. Is it legal for them to charge me money plus interest over the years that I was working in the private sector? A:…

Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: Prior to the National Security Personnel System (NSPS), I was a GS-13. My position did not convert to NSPS; however, I applied for and was selected for a supervisory position under NSPS. This position never existed under the GS system; it was the result of an organizational reorganization. When I converted back from NSPS to GS, I was placed in a non-supervisory, GS-13 position. However, I continued to perform the…

Q & A Session – Adequate Housing Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: I accepted a one year contract to work for a federal agency in a very remote area. I am currently working under that contract. Before agreeing to the offered terms, I was given a tour of a home which was safe and acceptable to me. However, after I signed the contract, I was placed in very different housing – a forty-year-old trailer. The…

Q & A Session – Ranking Employees Within Same Grade Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: There are rumors that my agency will soon reorganize, and I am concerned that I may be affected by a reduction in force (RIF). How would an agency rank three employees for retention if they are all GS employees of the same grade but with different steps and time-in-grade? Two employees have prior military service and one is receiving a…

Q & A Session – Veterans’ Preference and Involuntary Assignments Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: I am an employee of the United States Postal Service (USPS) and a preference eligible veteran with a disability rating of 30% or higher. The processing facility I work at may be closed, and I was wondering if I could be involuntarily assigned from a full-time position to a part-time position during a reduction in force (RIF). A: It is…

Q & A Session – Appropriate Compensation for Violation of Privacy Act Ask the Lawyer received the following question (paraphrased for easier reading and clarity) from a reader on a legal matter that might be of interest to the entire audience. Q: If the 1974 privacy act is violated during an internal investigation of a staff member, what is the appropriate monetary compensation? A: A civil action can be filed in federal court for some violations of the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552(a). if the violation is established, the plaintiff is entitled to actual damages, which are set at…