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: Is it true that federal agencies give 15-minute grace periods to employees? Also, is it considered harassment or an unlawful employment practice to have the Administrator Office (not my supervisor) harass me about my leave and alter my time and attendance records without my permission or knowledge of the situation without proof other than word of mouth or her own observations? A: With respect to your first question, there is…
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 a grievance with my agency and my Union invoked arbitration on June 2010. After 18 months of waiting for a hearing, the agency cancelled the hearing three days before the date of the hearing. They attempted to settle, but what was offered was an insult to my intelligence. I have not communicated with my Union in any way since Nov. 2011, and today I was emailed a settlement…
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 ex-husband retired in 2011. When we got divorced in 1999 there was a court-ordered benefit that I receive 50 percent of any retirement benefits when he retired from federal service. My share should have been paid to me directly by the Office of Personnel Management. All the documentation for the court ordered benefit has been filed with OPM. When I first called, they told me that his pay had…
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: How is seniority determined within the federal civil service? A: “Seniority” as a concept applies mostly to what unions and management have worked out in a collective bargaining agreement. There is also some limited reduction in force applicability. But, for the most part, “seniority” in and of itself does not result in special entitlements. Bill Bransford is managing partner of Shaw Bransford & Roth PC. Disclaimer: Ask a Lawyer publishes…
Most federal employees, including all of those in the General Schedule, have a position description. Have you ever looked at yours? Does it accurately describe what you do? Does it leave out important duties or describe your work in terms less significant than what you actually do? Does it matter? Employees in the GS system are subject to a rigid and somewhat mysterious classification system that actually does rely heavily on the position description. The result of an analysis of the position description contents determines both your job series and your grade level. So, the answer to the last question…
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 worked 24 years at a certain base. Twenty-one of those years I worked as an engineer and attained a Senior Engineer position at a GS-13 rate. With the “sundown” of the H3 platform which I worked with, I was given the choice of being an engineer on other programs or a manager with the foreign military sales. I chose the latter. That position has now been eliminated here,…
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: In October 2010, I submitted an application for medical/disability retirement. On March 11, 2011, my supervisor told me that I had to leave the agency within two hours because I had applied for disability retirement and that I cannot work. I was placed on LWOP on March 7, 2011, and have been until a final decision is made. This has all been done without any notification. Can I be placed…
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 GS-08 employee in the federal government. Several months ago, my agency recruited employees under the Federal Career Intern Program (FCIP) and many recruits were brought in using the Veteran’s Recruitment Appointment (VRA). I was offered entrance into the program. I was informed that since I am currently in the government system, I would be brought in as a GS-05, step 10. I think I may have been…
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: Can management deny administrative nurses’ requests to change their work schedule to a compressed work schedule using U.S. Code 7422? A: I assume your question inquires as to whether the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs has the authority to deny administrative nurses, as a group, their request to transition to a compressed work schedule under U.S. Code Title 38 § 7422. Title 38 §§ 7421-22 grant the Secretary…
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: VERA/VSIP both carry restrictions on reemployment within the federal government. Do those restrictions apply to jobs in the legislative and judicial branch? How about federally funded research and development centers (such as MITRE) and federally funded foundations (such as the HM Jackson foundation)? A: As you are aware, an employee who left the federal service under the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) or Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) may, upon…