Request for Inclusion of Overtime Pay in Backpay

A Federal employee made a claim for overtime pay as part of his backpay recovery after being reinstated to his position due to a determination that his removal was an unwarranted or unjustified personnel action. Under the provisions of the Back Pay Act, an employee, who is entitled to backpay as a result of an unjustified or unwarranted personnel action, is entitled to receive for the period for which the personnel action was in effect, an amount equal to all or any part of the pay that he normally would have earned for that period. If an employee is deprived of overtime work due to the personnel action, he is entitled to overtime backpay. However, the administrative determination was made that had this employee not been removed, scrutiny and intense review would have been exercised in an effort to minimize to the smallest extent possible the use of discretionary judgment in performing work during irregular hours. Therefore, the determination was made that no overtime should be included in the backpay. GAO agreed with this finding. Accordingly, the claim for overtime should not be paid.