General Information
 
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT
 
THE LAWSUIT FOR BACK PAY AND THE REMEDIAL
METHODOLOGY ACHIEVED BY THE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
The settlement of this Class Action lawsuit applies to former Federal employees who retired, separated, (or died), from one of the 17 agencies listed below between April 7, 1993 and September 7, 1999 with unused annual leave for which they were paid a lump-sum payment. The lump-sum payment was to include all the pay they would have received if they had remained as a Federal employee for the period of their unused annual leave instead of retiring, or separating, when they did. But, during that six-year period, many Federal employees did not receive all the pay they should have received when the lump-sum payment for unused annual leave first was calculated and paid, or as a result of a supplemental payment
The settlement that has been reached with the Federal Government on behalf of former employees of the 17 Federal agencies provides for the payment of unpaid accumulated accrued annual or vacation leave pay and interest to qualified eligible claimants according to a remedial methodology that has been approved by the court. Claimants will have to submit a claim form to the independent Settlement Administrator who has been approved by the court. The claimant will provide certain information and/or documentation that together with data provided by the government will enable the Settlement Administrator to determine if the claimant is eligible to receive an appropriate part of the settlement funds that have been placed in escrow by the government.
The settlement involves only those Federal employees who retired, separated, or died during the specific six-year period from 1993 to 1999 with unused annual leave in their account balance for which they were not paid properly in one or more of three factual situations, as follows:
  1. If an annual pay increase went into effect during the period of the former employee’s unused annual leave (projecting forward from the date of retirement, separation, or death the number of days of unused annual leave), BUT the lump-sum payment, or a subsequent supplemental payment, did not include the pay increase that the employee would have earned if he or she had remained a Federal employee for the period of their unused annual leave instead of retiring, separating (or dying) when they did, or the employee did not receive a supplemental payment for the additional pay increase after the statutory increase went into effect; and/or.

  2. If the former employee regularly worked at least one Sunday in each of four consecutive pay periods immediately before he or she retired, or separated, (or died), BUT the lump-sum payment did not include the Sunday premium pay he or she would have earned if he or she would have remained a Federal employee for the period of his or her unused annual leave instead of retiring, separating, (or dying) when they did; and/or

  3. If the former employee received a Foreign Post Allowance for housing immediately before he or she retired, separated, (or died) IN THE FOREIGN AREA (not in the United States).
Plaintiffs’ attorneys and representatives of the Defendant spent over six years in detailed, painstaking negotiations to resolve the conflict by sorting out a series of formulas that would be used by the independent Settlement Administrator to pay each qualified eligible former employee a fair amount of accrued and accumulated unpaid vacation/annual leave pay, plus a substantial amount of interest, without again paying those who were paid correctly.
Employees who received the proper amount of this pay when they retired/separated will not be eligible to receive any payment under this settlement.
HERE ARE THE DETAILS OF WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE BACK PAY AND INTEREST, AND THE REMEDIAL METHODOLOGY THAT WILL BE USED TO DETERMINE HOW MUCH A QUALIFIED CLAIMANT WILL RECEIVE FROM THE SETTLEMENT FUND IN BACK PAY AND INTEREST:
  1. Failure of the Government To Include Part of the Next Year’s Pay Increase In the Lump-Sum Payment for Unused Annual Leave of Retired/Separated Employees: Eligible retired, separated or deceased former Senior Executive Service and Senior Foreign Service members (SES, SFS), GS employees, Foreign Service Officers (FO, FP), Administrative Law Judges (ALJ), and Board of Contract Appeals Judges (BCA) will receive the unpaid next year’s annual pay increase based on formulae relative to their average salary and the month, year, and amount of unused annual leave in their account when they retired or separated, plus approximately 40% of the compound interest they would have received from the mid-year of the year of their retirement, separation, or death to June 30, 2005; employees who received a supplemental payment for the additional pay increase after they retired or separated will not be eligible to receive any payment.

  2. Failure of the Government To Include Sunday Premium Pay In the Lump-Sum Payment for Unused Annual Leave of Retired/Separated Employees: Eligible retired, separated, or deceased former GS, FP, WG and WL employees who were “regularly scheduled” to work on at least one Sunday per pay period in the last four consecutive pay periods immediately before retirement, separation (or death), as defined in the Settlement documents, will receive the unpaid Sunday premium pay that was not included in their lump-sum payment for unused annual leave, based on formulae relative to their average salary when they retired or separated plus approximately 40 % of the compound interest they would have received from the mid-year of the year of their retirement, separation (or death) to June 30, 2005;

  3. Failure of the Government To Include Post Allowances In the Lump-Sum Payment for Unused Annual Leave of Retired/Separated Employees: Eligible retired, separated, or deceased former employees who retired, separated, or died in foreign areas, and who received a Post Allowance for housing immediately before they retired, separated, or died, will receive the unpaid Post Allowance that was not included in their lump-sum payment for unused annual leave, based on formulae relative to the year of separation, size of household, applicable post allowance, income, and annual leave balance in their account on the date they retired/separated, plus approximately 40% of the compound interest that they should have received from the mid-year of the year of their retirement, separation (or death) to June 30, 2005.

    Based upon reasonable estimates premised upon the experience of Settlement Administration in other class action cases of the percentage of eligible claimants who may respond to the call for the submission of claim forms with appropriate documentation within the prescribed time limits to be approved by the court, it is anticipated that a majority of the qualified eligible claimants may receive a payment that approximates the amount of unpaid accrued and accumulated vacation/annual leave pay that they should have been paid as part of the lump-sum payment when they retired or separated, plus the interest described above. The Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims has determined that attorney fees, expenses, and costs will be paid directly from the Settlement Fund. All costs of administration incurred by the independent Settlement Administrator will be paid directly from the Settlement Fund as well. It is possible that each claimant’s share of the common fund may be reduced proportionally if the number of eligible claims, and/or the expenses of administration of the common fund, exceeds expectations. It is also possible that some smaller claims of less than $70 may not be paid because the costs of calculation and administration of such claims would impair the ability of the Fund to pay a substantial portion of the remainder of the payments, or that the administrative costs of payment would exceed the value of the payment.

    Interest will be calculated using July 1st of the applicable year to start the interest accrual. Accrual of interest will end as of June 30, 2005. The Settlement Administrator will calculate the appropriate interest by use of a formula approximating the standard method and percentages of compound interest for the years in question. Interest will be applied to the appropriate payment applicable to each eligible claimant.
THESE ARE THE 17 FEDERAL AGENCIES THAT ARE COVERED BY THIS SETTLEMENT; YOU MUST HAVE BEEN EMPLOYED BY ONE OF THESE AGENCIES (OR COMPONENT AGENCIES) TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS SETTLEMENT:
Agencies Covered By The Settlement
Department of Defense and its component agencies (including the Corps of Engineers);
Department of Agriculture;
Department of Commerce;
Department of Energy;
Department of Transportation (including the FAA);
Department of Justice;
Environmental Protection Agency;
General Services Administration;
Department of Health and Human Services;
Department of Housing and Urban Development;
Department of the Interior;
Department of Labor;
National Aeronautics Space Administration;
Office of Personnel Management;
Social Security Administration;
Department of State;
Department of the Treasury.
This settlement does NOT cover any former employees of the Veterans Administration (“VA”) or any other federal agencies not listed above. Those claims will continue to be litigated. IF YOU RETIRED OR SEPARATED FROM THE VA OR FROM ANY FEDERAL AGENCY NOT LISTED ABOVE BETWEEN APRIL 7, 1993 AND SEPTEMBER 7, 1999, PLEASE SEND AN EMAIL TO PLAINTIFFS’ ATTORNEY AND INFORM HIM OF THE DATE OF YOUR RETIREMENT OR SEPARATION; HIS EMAIL ADDRESS IS; iralechner@yahoo.com.
IN ORDER TO RECOVER “SUNDAY PREMIUM” BACK PAY AND INTEREST, YOU MUST HAVE REGULARLY WORKED AT LEAST ONE SUNDAY PER PAY PERIOD IN EACH OF FOUR CONSECUTIVE PAY PERIODS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE YOU RETIRED OR SEPARATED, AND YOU MUST HAVE WORKED IN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING OCCUPATIONAL SERIES:
Occupational Series (Sunday Pay Only)
0007 Correctional Officer
0025 Park Ranger
0050 Funeral Director
0060 Chaplain
0072 Fingerprint Identification
0082 United States Marshal
0083 Police
0084 Nuclear Materials Courier
0085 Security Guard
0090 Guide
0334 Computer Specialist
0382 Telephone Operating
0390 Telecommunications Processing
0391 Telecommunications
0512 Internal Revenue Agent
06XX Med/Hosp/Dent/Pub Health Group
07XX Veterinary Med Sci Group
1144 Commissary Store Management
1410 Librarian
1550 Computer Science
16XX Equip/Fac/Maint Group
18XX Investigation Group
21XX Transportation Group
25XX Wire Communication Equipment Installation and Maintenance
28XX Electrical Installation and Maintenance
54XX Industrial Equipment Operating Family
57XX Transportation/Mobile Equipment Operations
74XX Food Preparation and Serving