You have reached a collection of archived material.
The content available is no longer being updated and as a result you may encounter hyperlinks which no longer function. You should also bear in mind that this content may contain text and references which are no longer applicable as a result of changes in law, regulation and/or administration.
Office of the General Counsel
Date: January 23, 1998
Matter of: [xxx]
File Number: s9601705.2
OPM Contact: Paul Britner
An [agency] employee requests reconsideration of our settlement
denying his claim for pay retention. The settlement is
affirmed.
Title 5, CFR, section 536.104(a) lists certain situations in
which there is mandatory entitlement to pay retention. None of
these situations appear to apply to this case. Pay retention is not
applicable when an employee is reduced in grade or pay at the
employee's request. 5 CFR 536.105(a)(3).
FAA Order 3550.11A, paragraph 9d(7) states that the agency has
determined that pay retention shall be extended to any eligible
employee whose rate of basic pay would otherwise be reduced because
the employee no longer meets a specific condition or requirement of
employment (including medical standards) established by the agency
or OPM.
In this case, the employee asserts that he accepted a
lower-graded position for medical reasons. To support his claim,
the employee enclosed a letter from the Department of Labor
accepting his claim for job-related injuries to his left foot and
right toe and offering to pay for surgery to treat the injuries.
The treatment of his injuries, though, which may involve a
relatively brief period of time, do not establish that he was
medically disqualified from holding the higher-graded position. As
noted in the original settlement, the [agency's] Deputy Regional
Flight Surgeon determined that the employee was not medically
disqualified from serving in the higher-graded position when he
accepted the transfer to the lower-graded position. Accordingly, we
affirm the agency's determination that the employee's transfer was
voluntary and, therefore, that he does not qualify for pay
retention.