Claim for Retroactive Promotion and Backpay

An Air Force employee appealed a Claims Group settlement which denied his claim for a retroactive temporary promotion and backpay incident to an overlong detail. The Claims Group denied the claim on the basis of a statement by the agency that the employee did not perform the full range of duties established for the position. The employee's claim rested upon previous GAO decisions which held that employees who were detailed to higher grade positions for more than 120 days without prior Civil Service Commission approval were entitled to temporary promotions and backpay. Recently, the U.S. Court of Claims decided that neither the applicable statute nor the Federal Personnel Manual authorizes a retroactive temporary promotion and backpay in such cases. On the basis of this decision, GAO will no longer follow its prior decisions. Accordingly, the claim was denied.