Federal Employment Lawyers Who Get Results

If the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) denies your Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS) disability retirement application, you can reapply if there has been a material change in your circumstances. But getting a denial isn’t always the end of the road. You may have options to ask for reconsideration, or you can appeal a refusal of benefits. And the help of a good attorney can protect your rights during the application and appeal process. If you are looking for a good FERS disability attorney, you are on the right page. The Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D Wersing PLLC exclusively handles employment law cases. We provide award-winning advocacy. Please contact us for help with your federal employment needs.  Why Was My Disability Retirement Application Denied? The FERS disability retirement application process is detailed and complex. There are also several rules regarding who can and cannot receive disability retirement benefits. The OPM might have denied your retirement disability benefits because it believed you were not eligible or because you did not submit an adequate application. 1. Denial Because of Ineligibility Can you be denied retirement benefits? The answer is yes. The OPM can deny your FERS disability retirement benefits if one of the following circumstances applies to you: The OPM might also deny or dismiss your application if you don’t adequately explain how you meet each eligibility requirement. Our skilled and knowledgeable federal employment lawyers can ensure that your application clearly reflects your right to receive benefits. 2. Denial Because Your Application Was Late Your disability application must be timely. You must file your application while you are still federally employed or within one year of separating from your federal job. The application process requires a lot of documentation and statements from several individuals. As soon as you notice that your medical condition is affecting your ability to work, you should contact one of our experienced attorneys. We can help make sure you gather all the necessary information and meet the deadline for requesting benefits. 3. Denial Because of an Inadequate Application Your disability retirement application requires detailed information from you, your employer, and healthcare professionals who have treated you or have information about your condition. And all statements in your application should corroborate each other. If there is a lack of detail or there are discrepancies, the OPM may refuse to give you benefits. You can prevent discrepancies and a lack of detail by:  We can help you with all of this. Along with your disability retirement application, you must also apply for Social Security Disability (SSD)  benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA). To prove that you applied for SSD benefits, you must give OPM a copy of your application receipt and a copy of the SSA’s notice of approval or disapproval of your SSD application. If you do not take these steps or provide proof of your application status, the OPM may dismiss your FERS disability retirement application.  What You Can Do After a Denial You have a handful of options to obtain a better result if the OPM denies your request for benefits. These options include the following. Reapplication Generally, you have only one chance to apply for disability retirement based on the same circumstances. However, you can reapply for disability retirement if there is a material change in your circumstances, such as a deterioration of your condition.   Requesting Reconsideration In many cases, the OPM gives applicants a written initial decision regarding their right to benefits. After the OPM makes the initial decision to deny your retirement application, you have 30 days to ask the OPM to reconsider its decision. After reconsidering your case, the OPM issues a written final reconsideration decision that includes its findings and conclusions and information about your right to appeal. Appealing the Denial You can appeal your denial to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) if the OPM does not grant you disability retirement benefits after a reconsideration. And if the initial decision you receive is an initial final decision, you must appeal directly to the MSPB. In general, you have only 30 days to file your appeal, and it must be in writing. Any attempt to seek benefits for retirement disability must include detailed documentation, a clear explanation of your circumstances, and timely filings. We can handle these tasks for you and maximize your chances of receiving your well-deserved benefits. Speak to Attorneys Who Can Turn a No Into a Yes Whether you are on the first, second, or third bite at the apple in your request for retirement benefits, the Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D Wersing PLLC can champion your rights. We handle only federal employment cases, so our knowledge and experience are extensive. An award-winning attorney leads our firm, and we are passionate about protecting federal employees. You can contact us for help today by calling or reaching out on our website.  

If you have a job with a federal employer, you already know that you have access to great benefits, including good pay, loan forgiveness programs, and supportive leave policies. But even with great benefits for federal work, there is room for improvement, and the government recognizes this. To keep government wages and salaries competitive with the private sector, federal law demands locality pay for many federal employees. These payments can help you keep up with the cost of living in your area, and they can help the federal government retain a talented workforce that includes you. What is locality pay? It is a pay increase for federal employees to keep their wages comparable to private sector employees working the same type of job in the same geographic area. If you have questions about whether you should receive locality pay and how much it should be, you can ask the Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D Wersing PLLC. We represent clients experiencing federal employment issues, and we do it successfully. We are highly experienced, top-rated practitioners who can get the best out of your federal employment case. A Review of Locality Pay Under the United States Code Title 5, Section 5304, federal employers must reduce pay disparities between federal and private employees by giving locality payments to federal employees who make at least 5% less than their private sector counterparts. The locality pay rate is paid in addition to a federal employee’s base pay on the general schedule.  There are more than 50 localities with locality pay rates, and location pay rates can range from a little under 17% to more than 45%, depending on where you work. In addition to locality pay, many federal employees must receive a 4.7% increase to their general schedule pay in 2024. With all the tables and compensation levels, ensuring that you receive the proper base pay, pay increase, and locality pay can be challenging. But you can lean on us when these challenges arise. We are well-equipped to ensure that you recover every cent the government owes you for your labor.     Is Every Federal Employee Entitled to Locality Pay? No. Only federal employees who can perform their work within a listed locality are eligible for location payments. And only federal employees who receive scheduled rates for their base pay can receive locality pay.  What Can I Do If My Employer Has Not Paid All I Am Owed? You have many ways to address unpaid wages as a federal employee. Depending on the nature of your employment, you can: If you are a member of a bargaining unit with a collective bargaining agreement that does not exclude matters, you must engage in an NGP. Under those circumstances, you cannot file an agency or OPM claim. Any federal employee who files a suit in court has two years to file for non-willful violations and three years to file for willful violations. How an Attorney Can Help There are many ways an attorney can increase your chances of recovering unpaid wages, including: At the Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D Wersing PLLC, we can do all of the above and support you during every step of your wage claim. Contact Us Today Located in Houston, Texas, the Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D Wersing PLLC passionately champions the rights of federal employees. We are headed by award-winning attorney Aaron Wersing, and we have experience working with many federal agencies to recover relief for government employees. Whether you are facing matters regarding government pay, labor violations, discrimination, disability needs, or retirement, we can help you get the results you need and deserve. With a call to our office or a click on our website, you can schedule a consultation today.

As the end of 2023 rapidly approaches, millions of government workers wonder what the federal pay raise will be for 2024. The federal pay raise in 2024 will likely be 5.2% for most government workers. However, certain contingencies may make it higher or lower. Read on to learn about the federal pay raise in 2024, including its effective date and the effect of the continuing resolution.  Understanding How Federal Pay Raises Work To explain the upcoming pay raise, we need to explore the history of the federal pay raise process. According to various sources, federal employee pay has lagged behind the private sector for decades. In 1990, Congress passed the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act (FEPCA). This law aimed to close the pay gap between federal employees and their private-sector counterparts. It employed several mechanisms to achieve this balance. For one, it established locality pay so employees in higher-cost areas could receive additional pay. FEPCA also mandated an annual survey of private-sector pay to compare with federal salaries so that federal income continued to match the market.  Critically, FEPCA states that federal pay will automatically increase to match private-sector pay unless the President proposes a different pay raise amount because of an “economic emergency.” Congress can either alter the President’s proposed raise or remain silent, allowing the President’s proposal to take effect. Ever since FEPCA took effect in 1994, every president has annually used a minor provision within the law to prevent federal pay from fully catching up to private-sector pay. Specifically, the President claims that an “economic emergency” affecting the general welfare dictates implementing a different pay increase. Congress generally defers to this claim. Why the Federal Pay Raise in 2024 Will Likely Be 5.2% With inflation raging in 2023, several members of Congress introduced the FAIR Act, which would have raised federal worker pay by 8.7%. However, Congress has failed to act on the bill and seems unlikely to do so in the near future. President Biden announced a 5.2% average pay raise for federal employees in August. This pay raise consists of a 4.7% increase for all federal employees and an approximately 0.5% increase in locality pay. A few employees may get slightly more than this amount because the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is creating several new locality areas.  The effective date for the federal pay raise in 2024 is January 14th. This pay raise year’s scheduled salary rate is applicable, excluding the locality-based comparability payment. What’s the Relationship Between the Federal Pay Raise in 2024 and the Current Continuing Resolution? Given the recent dysfunction in Congress regarding the continuing resolution, many government employees wonder how the budget situation will affect their pay raise. The good news is that the continuing resolution will not affect the government employee pay raise. This is because the continuing resolution is effective until late January 2024. Furthermore, the resolution does not discuss the federal pay raise, so President Biden’s proposed raise will probably occur.  However, the situation after the new year is still unclear. The continuing resolution funds part of the government until January 20, 2024, and another part until February 3, 2024. What occurs after that time is anyone’s guess. If a shutdown occurs, most government employees will likely see a temporary loss of pay. Is There a Federal Pay Raise 2024 Calculator? Several online calculators help you predict your pay rate in 2024. That said, you can easily calculate your 2024 pay by multiplying your current pay by 1.052. You can multiply it by 1.087 to understand how your pay under the proposed FAIR Act would compare. Am I in a Locality Pay Area? As of 2024, the country will have 54 locality pay areas. These include the following areas: Most major cities have their own locality pay area. The highest locality pay is currently the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA area.  Questions About Your Federal Pay or Benefits? We Can Help.  Federal pay is a surprisingly tricky topic to understand. Yet, it pales compared to other federal employment issues like disability, retirement, employment discrimination protections, and Title 38 rights. At the Federal Employment Law Firm of Aaron D. Wersing, PLLC, we love helping our clients make sense of their rights and responsibilities. We practice exclusively on federal employment issues, so we have ample experience deciphering even the most complex topics. Give us a call today, or get in touch with us to set up an initial consultation.