[Substitution of Sick Leave for Leave Without Pay for Former DLA Employee]

The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) requested a decision regarding a former employee's request that it substitute his accrued sick leave for a 6-month period he was on leave without pay (LWOP) status. The claimant contended that DLA failed to advise him that he could take sick leave during the 6-month period. GAO held that DLA could not retroactively convert the claimant's LWOP to sick leave, since DLA reasonably determined that the LWOP status was appropriate for the claimant, who had found other employment. Accordingly, the claim was denied.