Amendment allowed Johnson to resign, get severance

Menifee City Council members are shown during Wednesday's meeting, in which Rob Johnson's separation agreement was announced. Menifee 24/7 photos: Kristen Spoon

A clause included in an October 2015 amendment to Rob Johnson's contract as Menifee city manager appears to be the reason he received what amounts to eight months' severance pay, even though his departure is officially listed as a resignation.

Following a performance review requested by City Council members, Johnson's departure after four years in the position was announced as a resignation on Dec. 27. On Wednesday, a separation agreement stated that Johnson will receive $235,491 severance pay.

That document states that "in accordance with his employment agreement", Johnson will receive six months' severance pay, plus the cash value of two more months' pay for agreeing to waive the 60-day notice required to terminate his contract. The question then becomes this: Where in his employment agreement does it state that he gets six months' severance pay for resigning?

According to City Attorney Jeffrey Melching, that language was added to Johnson's contract in 2015, when he was given an extension and a raise.

The amendment to section 1(C)(1) of Johnson's contract states, in part, the following:

"If City terminates (or is deemed to have terminated) City Manager, then City Manager shall be entitled to six months salary as severance, together with all accumulated administrative leave, vacation and sick leave at his highest full salary earned during his tenure with the City."

In an email to Menifee 24/7 on Friday, Melching referenced the contract amendment and highlighted the above sentence as the reason for Johnson's severance pay. It appears, then, that the phrase "is deemed to have terminated" Johnson is being interpreted as "forced resignation." That guarantees him the same severance pay he would receive if officially terminated. Melching did not respond to a second email requesting further explanation.

This contract language allows Johnson (left) to keep the word "termination" off his employment record while guaranteeing him the maximum severance pay -- language new mayor Neil Winter says should never have been included, nor should it be included in future contracts.

In an interview with Menifee 24/7 on Friday, Winter emphasized once again his commitment to attacking problems within city government. He said the large severance package given Johnson was a legal commitment that could not be avoided -- but one that should never be repeated.

"I can't fix the past," Winter said. "I have to go with what was presented to me. I hate to point fingers, but I believe it will take at least six months to get rid of all the land mines left from the past leadership."

This was a reference to former mayor Scott Mann, who lost a bid for re-election after the Fair Political Practices Commission announced a $60,000 penalty against him for misuse of campaign funds. Johnson and Mann were the only parties involved in a $12,400 check Johnson wrote (without the knowledge of other council members) to Mann to pay for an non-budgeted leadership seminar in Harvard last summer (a check that was later voided).

In addition, Mann is considered instrumental in gaining approval of Johnson's contract amendment, in which the clause "or is deemed to have terminated" was included and in which the severance pay was increased from three months in the original contract to six months.

"In the past, there hasn't been a sufficient review process," said Winter, who has decades of experience in employee performance reviews as an executive with Pitney Bowes. "You also can't have an arrangement with only the mayor and city manager involved. We see how that went.

"I believe the new council is going to work together as a team. We have some diverse opinions on things, but I appreciate all opinions that are shared. Most of all, we have to ensure that no one person becomes dominant in the process. I am the mayor, but I am just one of five council members."

Winter said city officials already have a pool of candidates for the position of interim city manager while Economic Development Director Jeff Wyman serves as acting city manager. Meanwhile, he intends to initiate discussion about how city employment contracts should be crafted in the future.

"As I said, I would like to bring more of a private sector process to city government," Winter said. "There has to be a contract, but it should imply that your pay is based on performance standards, not a guarantee. We need to make it more attractive for the employee to perform well than to worry about 'What can I get in case I don't last more than four years?'"

Winter, who is very active on social media, said he has seen the comments criticizing the termination package and asking what happened to the promise of a fresh start. He said he continues to believe that the majority of Menifee residents are willing to support his efforts to put prior mistakes in the past and focus on positive change.

"I believe there is a relatively small nucleus that is expressing negative comments leaning toward the past," he said. "There is a larger segment that is saying they believe we now have a new direction."

Winter urges residents to contact him via Facebook, approach him in the many public venues in which he makes himself available, and to attend City Council meetings to express their concerns.