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 have three questions related to compensatory time for travel. My normal tour of duty is 0730-1700, Monday through Thursday with alternating Fridays off. I travel overseas often for my work. My questions are as follows: First, after our supervisor took his position, he told us that we should all forfeit our compensatory time off for travel. Our previous supervisors had directed us to submit a log of travel comp…

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 a 52-year-old excepted service employee with nearly 14 years of service under the FERS retirement system. I just received a notice of removal for misconduct prior to my federal service. Specifically, I entered an Alford plea (nolo contendre) to one felony. Since my offense was not treason or espionage, will I be entitled to a deferred annuity? When and how do I apply? A: Yes. You may receive…

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: My father passed two years before retiring from FAA after working there for 26 years. I was 28 years old at the time. He divorced my mother when I was 13 years old and never remarried. I was named his beneficiary with 80 percent of his life insurance and a 100 percent beneficiary of his retirement. Since he passed away only two years prior to his retirement, I was told…

With so much written about handling the problem employee, the difficult or problem supervisor sometimes is overlooked. One issue is identifying when or if a difficult supervisor is really a problem. Is the supervisor just tough and demanding, or is the supervisor abusive, retaliatory or discriminatory? Sometimes the subordinate feels put upon by the supervisor’s demands. Sometimes these demands are reasonable, but harsh. Where is that line between George Patton and Attila the Hun? Sometimes a supervisor’s expectations are appropriate, but a lack of supervisory skills may inhibit him — particularly if he is new — from effectively overcoming resistance to…

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 African American female who works for a government agency. Approximately two weeks ago, two white individuals hung a banana from the ceiling over another African American’s desk. I have been extremely upset and stressed since the incident. I have filed an EEO complaint and so has the other victim of this incident. Our Section Chief, who is white, has told one of the white individuals that “everything…

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 a Department of Defense employee with almost 30 years of federal service stationed overseas with return rights to my stateside position. Despite outstanding ratings at my stateside position, and a fully acceptable rating in my first year overseas, the new supervisor has decided that I am a failure, has put me on a soon-to-end PIP and is likely to find unsatisfactory performance. Her boss, the deciding official, will…

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 a 100% service-connected disabled veteran. For the past 11 years, I have worked as a civilian in the Air Force. I found an opening in the Department of Transportation that I was interested in applying for. While reading over the announcement, I saw that it said, “please ensure you submit all documents including your most recent SF-50 as we use that for verification of federal employment and veterans…

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 have been told by friends who are EEO counselors that most EEO cases settle before a hearing. Do you have a sense of how EEO cases fare when a civil action is filed? Are most settled? Are the settlement amounts higher? When the agency doesn’t settle, do they usually win? Why would a complainant choose to file a civil action over an EEO hearing? A: Most EEO cases settle.…

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 an employee who is a SK-13 (non-supervisory) is put on a detail as a team leader SK-14 position (non-supervisory), is that employee entitled to a 6% pay increase during the detail period? A: No. Bill Bransford is managing partner of Shaw Bransford & Roth PC. Disclaimer: Ask a Lawyer publishes information on this website for informational purposes only. Information on this website is intended – but not promised, guaranteed,…

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 have ten years of service with the federal government. Five months ago, I accepted a position in another division, which was a lateral reassignment. Management has not provided me with an effective date for the reassignment. Is there federal law on the maximum time an agency has to effectuate a lateral reassignment? A: Sometimes agencies are slow processing SF-50s. Follow up with your personnel office. There are best practices,…