Overtime Compensation for Bureau of Land Management Employees

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) requested a ruling concerning the overtime payment options available for its use. Since 1977, the agency has paid its criminal investigators an hourly rate for each hour of administratively uncontrollable overtime (AUO) worked, but paid those investigators nearing retirement AUO annual premium pay in accordance with statutory law. All but three of the investigators nearing retirement prefer the immediate benefit of hourly overtime pay and consider mandatory AUO annual premium pay to be financially detremental to them. Under 5 U.S.C. 5542(a) overtime at one and one-half times the basic rate of pay is payable if the overtime hours are officially ordered or approved. However, AUO premium pay is authorized under 5 U.S.C. 5545(c)(2) for situations in which management is unable to supervise and account for all overtime hours considered acute for criminal investigators. Management's inability to control overtime is a necessary condition justifying AUO annual premium pay; additional amounts may be paid for regularly scheduled overtime and work at night, on Sunday, and on holidays. Because lack of management control and the employee's discretion to work overtime make hourly overtime under 5 U.S.C. 5542(c) inappropriate but are requirements for AUO annual premium pay, it was held that the two types of compensation were mutually exclusive. Accordingly, if the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 5545(c)(2) are satisfied, BLM should continue to pay AUO annual premium pay to its criminal investigators. However, if management can control and accurately account for overtime hours so that they can reasonably be ordered or approved, hourly overtime should be paid under 5 U.S.C. 5542(a). BLM must determine which criteria apply and pay all investigators accordingly.