Should I take the 8 month buyout?

I vaguely remember from a business law class that even a verbal agreement would be enforceable, but the issue with them is being hard to prove they occurred.

The advice everyone seems to be giving you hinges on whether this offer is an enforceable contract with your employer.

My opinion of musk and trump is that they will try to screw you on the back half and say the people taking the offer were deadbeats regardless of the contract status.

My real advice is that you shouldn’t quit your job until you have something else lined up or are confident you could quickly. Spend a half a day sending out resumes on whatever job board and see if you get interview requests. That will atleast give you an idea of how quickly you might be able to get hired. Also becoming a federal employee is quite difficult and typically comes with a lot of job security and dependable benefits.

All that is true, but how many contracts has Trump ever followed? Zero. With the Supreme Court in his pocket he will renege on this and people won’t get paid what they are owed. The only way I would accept this scheme is to get the full lump sum up front upon submitting the acceptance. Of course the government would need to provide a clear accounting of how much you are getting paid…

Not yet! Thank you for proper use of the apostrophe.

I'm not sure a contract that violates laws is enforceable, but otherwise I agree with you. I'm not sure that suing the federal government is going to have a quick resolution to get money either. If say the govt stops paying in March, can you wait 2 years for the courts to get you your half a year's pay. And you will have to take time off a job new job to go to court - unlike the feds private employers may not pay you while you are at court, not working. And you will have to risk a judge requiring the government to follow through on a contract that violates the law - that seems iffy.

You think that OP, who posts this question on this discussion board, is going to review that offer with a lawyer? :-)

I'm hoping that everyone takes the buyout - then Trump will have to do all the work himself or get people overseas to do the job.

Musk now has control over OPM, so he can not pay whoever he wants. So, he can fire you from outside the GOV, then you will say, “hey thats not legal”, then he”ll just not pay you. Then there will be no one to complain to and no one with any ability and authority to restore your job or pay. Among other things.

Normally, when a company offers an extended severance payment you can be confident that the company will honor its commitment to continue paying you. Given the dynamic between the Trump Administration and some of the Agencies involved it is too early to be 100% confident that you'd actually receive the severance.

and now elon has access to the treasury dept so he can stop ss payments or tax refunds anytime he wants. great job ppl who voted for trump. you are all for this until your farm gets dug up looking for oil or those oil lines go right through your backyard for all the richir rich;s out there

From the reading of your questions I would say, "Yes, take the 8-months." Here are my reasons:

(1) You're on a running site and seem young (new in your job). The odds of you getting really sick is low and you probably don't have 30 prescriptions. So, the insurance running out in 8 months is not that big of a deal for you.

(2) You don't like the job. You don't sound built to sit at a desk for 8 hours and do nothing. I'm not. I'd rather be jobless than feel like I'm wasting my life completely (all jobs are a little bit of waste).

(3) You're going to be laid off. You are union fodder, they don't care about you. Your co-workers are trying to keep their jobs no matter what and it's a toxic environment. Again, you're on a long-distance running website. You might have trouble at this job because of Trump because you are most likely a white guy.

(4) This gives you the time to chase what you want to do. Think of it like a race. You're not going to start running until you have your shoes on, took a poop, sip of water, etc. Don't leave your job until you're ready to start looking for another. Build a resume on their time/dime, see if you can go to a trade meeting or show or conference on their time/dime, etc., don't "quite" until you have to (2/6).

That's not quite what the contract's clause says or is about. However, I agree with what you say that the "offer" would likely be enforceable if a federal employee relies upon it to their detriment. On the other hand, unless the employee is ready to resign or retire anyway, why give up unemployment benefits by resigning? Continue to "work" for 8 months while looking for a job and then have unemployment as a fallback once the mass layoff occurs. This is essentially like a voluntary severance option and the people who should take it are the ones who usually take these--those who are ready and able to leave anyway.

And isn't the felon's usual method just to counter-sue? Delusional to think anyone gets paid from this.

This buyout is a scam and a con, it's questionable whether it's even legal. Agencies aren't setup for that and likely do not even have the funding. Don't fall for that trap! I've been a DoD employee for over a decade. These are truly unprecedented times.

Among many other things, the illegal IG firings should be sending alarm bells to every citizen that cares about transparent, responsible, and healthy public service.

I took it and I've been getting paid since March for not working and just got offered a job that is absolutely better. There was some stress about the job hunting since due to the lack of good experience provided by the fed job I was basically search as a new grad, but now that I'm where I am, I think I did well not to listen to most of the advice here.

Again I'm coming back to say that I'm glad I took it. Being out of the federal workforce is something I'm super grateful for.

Whatcha doing now?

We need more information to give you well-rounded advice.

How much are you making?

What are your expenses?

What do you want to do professionally and what is your plan?

You have indicated that you do not like the work and that it will involve a long commute if you stay on. Most people do not like their jobs, and a long commute will be soul-crushing (and add significantly to your expenses).

Balance the above against this: if you ads making enough to save, working for the government is almost always better in all ways than working for the private sector. Your wages may be lower (now), but you probably have quality insurance. You also likely have the option of becoming vested in a defined-benefit pension. If so, that is rarer than the dodo bird.

You do not want to stay where you are. But you don't have to. Getting experience--as much as you can--working for Uncle Sam makes you much more marketable when you crossover into the private sector. Play your cards right (and yes, get lucky) and you may be able to make bank working for the private sector while drawing a pension (if you get one); that is called "double-dipping" and it is extremely despicable, but it is equally commonplace.

We don't know the answer to the questions I asked, but consider this in the spirit of "don't kill the goose that laid the golden egg."

Also, are you really worried about having less time to spend online? You will loose the time you spend commuting, but bear in mind that most people your age will never be able to afford a home unless they inherit it. With some luck and planning, you should be able to.

I've posted updates saying I took it and am doing better because of it. I have a private sector job that pays me more than I would have been making had I stayed