By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

Former manager suing City of Nanaimo; claims firing designed to limit his pension

Mar 12, 2018 | 2:39 PM

NANAIMO — Another former manager is suing the City of Nanaimo, accusing them of conspiring to deny him a full pension.

Rod Davidson was the bylaw, regulation and security manager when he was fired in September 2017. At the time, Nanaimo’s director of human resources John Van Horne told NanaimoNewsNOW it wasn’t “a commentary on Rod’s work performance” and was part of a corporate restructuring.

The notice of civil claim, filed last week in B.C. Supreme Court, alleged Davidson was fired without cause and without notice and it has to do with his pension.

The claim said in September when he was fired, Davidson was two-and-a-half months away from reaching his five-year milestone with the City. In those five years, he would have made the most money ever in his career, which affects how much pension he would receive.

He was also nine months away from turning 60, another milestone which would have increased his pension.

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The notice of claim said Davidson lost money in his pension when the City allegedly breached their contract and fired him.

Davidson asked for an undisclosed amount of money to cover the losses due to his firing and also his legal costs. He was paid a little more than $52,000 as part of his severance, equalling nearly half of his yearly salary.

He was fired when city manager Tracy Samra was on leave from the City.

In the restructuring which cost Davidson his job, the bylaw, regulation and security portfolio was taken over by Brad McRae, who was in turn fired in January 2018.

Davidson is not the first recently fired manager to sue the City.

Former roads and traffic services manager Brian Denbigh filed his lawsuit in February 2017, claiming the City fired him before he could retire. The City denied any wrongdoing in that case and the allegations have not gone to court. 

Davidson’s claims have also not been proven in court.

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