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Vol. 5 Edition 17
CEO, COO severances cost CKHA $700K-plus By Bruce Corcoran bruce@chathamvoice.com
As the rebuilders of Chatham-Kent Health Alliance continue to look for ways to run more efficiently, an item that is slowing such progress is staff severance. The removal of president and CEO Colin Patey, as well as chief operating officer Sarah Padfield last fall cost the alliance 18 months in severance pay for each. Combined, that’s more than $710,000, based on Ontario Public Sector Salary Disclosure numbers from 2016. Rob Devitt, supervisor for CKHA, declined to comment on specific severance packages, but said giving 18 months in pay to management let go without cause is typical. “The key point is we have, as almost all organizations do, is employment contracts for executives. These include provisions for severance, including severance without cause,” he said. “Those are in the contract, and we honour the contract.” Patey’s and Padfield’s
contracts state – and this nomenclature seems consistent across CKHA executive contracts – that if they are to be let go without cause they are to receive up to 18 months in pay. “The Employer may terminate the Agreement prior to the expiry of the term without cause, in its absolute discretion, for any reason by giving the Employee prior notice in writing or the equivalent pay in lieu thereof in equal monthly amounts, or any combination thereof, equal to 12 months, plus one month for each completed year of service after the first year of employment, up to a total maximum of 18 months,” the contracts state. There is also a provision in their contracts that should an employee be entitled to severance under the Employment Standards Act, the notice period would instead be paid out in lieu of notice. Devitt said the 18-month payout is consistent with what other organization pay.
Continued on page 3 Run Date: Mar 28, 2017 Chatham Voice 10.333 x 2.1430
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THURSDAY, APRIL 20, 2017
FREE!
Eggstravaganza!
Mary Beth Corcoran/The Chatham Voice
Hundreds of young people and their parents took advantage of a beautiful Easter Monday off school to visit the first annual Chatham-Kent First Responders Easter ‘Egg’stravaganza, a free community event hosted by Chatham-Kent Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Chatham-Kent Police Services, Chatham-Kent Fire & Emergency Services, Medavie EMS and the United Way. Sinead Herder, 2, and her mom Justine kept busy finding Easter eggs at the event.
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