[Response to FAA Employee's Appeal of Overtime Compensation Claim]

A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employee appealed the FAA calculation of the amount of his overtime compensation, contending that the sleep and meal periods of his overtime hours were not bona fide, since they could be interrupted. GAO held that: (1) the essential consideration in determining whether a meal was bona fide was whether an employee's meals were in fact frequently interrupted; (2) since FAA compromised and settled thousands of similar backpay claims, it would not disturb this settlement in the absence of evidence that FAA acted unreasonably in its interpretation, and where doing so might disturb the rights of the claimants whose claims had been settled; and (3) since the claimant merely alleged that the periods were not bona fide, he did not meet his burden of proof and establish his right to payment. Accordingly, the claim was denied.