Parramatta Council faces third straight six-figure CEO payout
Parramatta ratepayers face being slapped with a third consecutive golden handshake to a council fat cat when councillors meet tonight to decide the fate of suspended CEO Mark Stapleton.
Parramatta
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Parramatta ratepayers face being slapped with a third consecutive six-figure payout to a council fat cat when councillors meet tonight to decide the fate of suspended CEO Mark Stapleton.
The Advertiser can reveal the previous two CEOs, Greg Dyer and Dr Robert Lang, received a collective golden handshake of $535,869 over the past five years.
And now that figure could be nearly doubled if Mr Stapleton is “moved on” after an independent report on whether he faked his CV to land the $500,000-a-year job is tabled at an extraordinary meeting tonight.
Mr Stapleton has been suspended on full pay — a cost of $197,000 so far to stay home — since early September after council referred his recruitment process for an external review.
It’s understood that, if sacked, he would be in line for an additional 38-week payout, taking the cost to ratepayers in excess of $560,000 since his suspension and the total CEO payouts since 2014 to nearly $1 million.
Mr Stapleton says he will not comment for legal reasons during the investigation by former Industrial Relations Commissioner Jane Seymour.
Sources say councillors will be presented with Ms Seymour’s report in closed session tonight. It’s expected that councillors will call for an adjournment to have some time to analyse the contents of the report before returning for any vote.
Parramatta Lord Mayor Andrew Wilson said payouts for CEOs were a “cheap option” for council.
“If the situation becomes unworkable between the CEO and the council chamber, as well as between that person and staff, then you have to move the CEO along and pay out their entitlements,” Cr Wilson said.
“This is considered the cheaper and easier course of action. It’s a lot of money, and I understand the community get annoyed with it.
“But I can assure them that we go to enormous lengths to get the right people. Ultimately, though, if the chamber wants to move a CEO on, then you have to do it in the correct manner — and that often means paying them out.”
Independent councillor Lorraine Wearne said council should not be blamed for the massive severance packages.
“Contracts for the CEO are put together by the Local Government Association and the State Government. Council can’t change the contract,” the long-time Epping ward councillor said.
“And the causes of a CEO’s termination are not just between that CEO and councillors. It’s also with council’s staff. And that’s what councillors also have to take into account when making decisions on these matters.
“We have tried to vary contracts with CEOs in the past, but we’ve been told by the government it’s a fixed, standard contract. And this favours bureaucrats over residents and ratepayers.”
QUESTIONS OVER PAYOUT BREACH
Leaked documents have revealed former CEO Greg Dyer, who quit in late 2017, was paid out $128,500 as part of a deed of release with Parramatta Council.
There were three conditions imposed on Mr Dyer as part of the severance package, including conflict-of-interest restrictions placed on his employment for a 12-month period.
Mr Dyer linked up with WSP Australia Pty Ltd as Western Sydney client director on January 21 last year.
WSP is a consultant company employed by the Walker Corporation in one of its developments.
Council owns the land on which the four-tower Parramatta Square development is being built.
It’s in dispute over who wrote in the conflict-of-interest clause, with both Mr Dyer and Lord Mayor Andrew Wilson claiming they did so.
When the matter was raised at meetings last year, councillors were told that, based on legal advice, it would be unlikely that a court would grant an “injunctive relief” to enforce the severance terms on Mr Dyer, who had been CEO since 2014.
Asked on Friday why council never pursued Mr Dyer over the matter since his employment with WSP was brought to its attention last February, Lord Mayor Andrew Wilson said it was a decision based on “a lot of legal advice”.
Today, Mr Dyer rejected having any conflict of interest in his new role and said he was “not pushed out the door” by council.
“WSP has very stringent conflict-on-interest management processes and I completely reject any claim that I have a conflict of interest,” the former Australian wicketkeeper told the Advertiser.
“I haven’t seen any evidence of anyone trying to undermine me, but if it was there, then it would be very disappointing, unnecessary and completely out of context.”
The Advertiser has witnessed a letter Mr Dyer sent to Cr Wilson on February 15 last year, in which he states: “I was completely unaware of the existence of the consulting arrangement between WSP and Walker Corporation when I signed my employment contract with WSP.
“I have not and will not have any involvement in the provision of any of the services by WSP to Walker and will not participate in any way in the professional services relationship between the entities.”
A Walker spokesman said: “Greg Dyer has never worked on the Parramatta Square project for or on behalf of Walker Corporation in any capacity, including as an employee of WSP.”
Mr Dyer said he had “no issues” in his dealings with staff during his time as council CEO.
“I had a brilliant relationship with them and miss them terribly,” he said. “I’ve had feedback from them that they feel the same way.
“The farewell I was given when I left was emotional, and I certainly wasn’t pushed out the door from council. My department from council was entirely of my doing, not council’s.”
He declined to comment on the record about what caused him to quit.
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