Sudbury city managers get over $1M in severance payments

CBC News has learned that Greater Sudbury taxpayers spent more than $1 million in severance payments to four departed city managers.

The numbers, made public through freedom of information requests, show the city made two dozen severance payments and arbitration settlement payments in the last 18 months.

But, four of them are far richer than the others, and are all listed as "notice and severance."

• $375,296.20 to be paid out over 9 months
• $310,468.20 to be paid out over 18 months
• $245,618.78 to be paid out over 24 months
• $137,244.24 to be paid out over 24 months

Exactly who these cheques would have been made out to is not public information.

But since January 2015, there were four senior managers who left city hall suddenly with no explanation: chief administrative officer Doug Nadorozny, emergency services chief Tim Beadman, transit director Roger Sauve and transit operations manager Robert Gauthier.

When Nadorozny left the city in April 2015,  Mayor Brian Bigger would only say, "He's leaving the organization. We wish him well."

He and the 12 city councillors have continued their silence on the subsequent exits of senior staff, saying they can't comment on personnel matters. 

Changes to the city's senior management team are voted on by city council in closed door sessions — and they would also be consulted on the firing of middle managers.

But, CBC News cannot confirm that the decisions to award these severance packages to get these people off the payroll were made by mayor and council.

Mayor Brian Bigger declined to comment for this story. When CBC News pointed out that questions would be about city finances and not human resources, there was no response.

All 12 city councillors were also contacted and none were willing comment.