(a) | Accrued Salary and Vacation. The Company shall pay to the Employee (i) earned but unpaid salary through the Termination Date; and (ii) pay in respect of the previously accrued but unused vacation days as of the Termination Date, in each case, less applicable withholdings and deductions as provided herein, in accordance with the Company’s past practice. |
(b) | Continued Health Benefits. The Employee and his eligible dependents shall be entitled to continue to participate in the Company's health and dental insurance plans (collectively, “Health Plans”) at the full applicable Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (“COBRA”) rate for the applicable COBRA period. The Employee shall be responsible for all payments related to COBRA continuation coverage and for completing and submitting all applicable enrollment documents as required by the administrator. The Employee's participation in the Health Plans shall otherwise be subject to the terms and conditions of the Health Plans as applicable to employees generally from time |
(c) | Incentive Bonus. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Company shall pay to the Employee an amount equal to $65,000.00, less applicable withholdings and deductions as provided herein, in accordance with the Company’s past practice, in recognition for the Employee’s efforts during the portion of fiscal year 2017 during which the Employee was employed by the Company (the “FY2017 Pro Rated Bonus”). The FY2017 Pro Rated Bonus will be paid on the first applicable pay date following the termination of the Consulting Period for any reason other than pursuant to the Company’s election to terminate the Consulting Services upon a breach of the terms of this Agreement by the Employee. |
(d) | Deferred Incentive Bonus. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Company shall pay to the Employee an amount equal to $42,835 in respect of the previously awarded but deferred annual cash incentive bonus awarded in respect of fiscal years 2015 and 2016, together with any and all interest payable thereon through the date of payment, calculated in in accordance with the Company’s past practice, less applicable withholdings and deductions (the “Deferred Bonus”). The Deferred Bonus will be paid within seven (7) days following the Release Effective Date. |
(e) | Equity Awards. The Employee has previously been granted awards of restricted stock (the “Restricted Stock”) and stock options (“Stock Options”) with respect to the common stock of the Company pursuant to the terms of the Era Group Inc. 2012 Share Incentive Plan. Effective upon the Termination Date, any shares of Restricted Stock that have not previously become vested shall become vested and non-forfeitable and any Stock Options that have not previously become vested shall become vested and shall remain exercisable until the earlier of (A) ninety (90) days following the end of the Consulting Period or (B) the expiration of the original term of the applicable Stock Option, in each case, in accordance with the treatment contemplated under terms of the applicable award agreement upon a “termination without Cause.” Except to the extent modified hereby, the Restricted Stock and Stock Options shall continue to be subject to the terms and conditions as provided by the respective award agreements for each such award and the plan pursuant to which each award is granted. |
(f) | No Additional Benefits. The Employee acknowledges and agrees that, except as provided in this Section 2, the Employee's participation as an active employee under any benefit plan, program, policy or arrangement sponsored or maintained by the Company Group shall cease and be terminated as of the Termination Date. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Employee's eligibility for and active participation in any of the tax-qualified plans maintained by the Company Group will end on the Termination Date and the Employee will earn no additional benefits under those plans after that date. The Employee shall be treated as a terminated employee for purposes of all such benefit plans and programs effective as of the Termination Date, and shall receive all payments and benefits due to him under such plans and programs in accordance with the terms and conditions thereof. |
(g) | Acknowledgement. The Employee understands and agrees that absent this Agreement, he would not otherwise be entitled to any payments and benefits as set forth in Sections 2(c) and 3 and his right to receive the payments and benefits set forth herein shall be an unsecured contractual obligation of the Company and he shall have no greater rights than any other employee, consultant or general unsecured creditor of the Company. |
(h) | Tax Withholding. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, all payments made by the Company or its subsidiaries to the Employee pursuant to this Section 2 shall be reduced by applicable tax withholdings and any other deductions required by law. |
(a) | Consulting Period. The Employee shall be retained by the Company as a consultant for the period commencing on the Release Effective Date and terminating on the 4-month anniversary of the Release Effective Date, subject to early termination pursuant to Section 3(h) below (as applicable, the “Consulting Period”). |
(b) | Scope of Consulting Services. During the Consulting Period, the Employee shall consult with the Company Group and its executive officers on an as-needed basis regarding the business and operations of the Company and the Company Group, as well as the transition of duties of the Employee to other employees of the Company (the “Consulting Services”). The Employee shall report directly to, and shall perform the Consulting Services as directed by, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, or such other officer or director of the Company Group as may be determined from time to time by the Company, in its sole discretion. During the Consulting Period and thereafter, the Employee also will cooperate with the Company and its affiliates in any pending or future litigation or investigations or other disputes concerning third parties in which the Employee, by virtue of his prior employment with or service to the Company or its subsidiaries, affiliates or predecessors, has relevant knowledge or information; provided however that Employee shall be reimbursed for his time at an hourly rate equivalent to his current effective hourly rate and previously approved expenses in connection with such cooperation provided following the end of the Consulting Period. In connection with providing the Consulting Services, the Employee shall comply in full with all applicable law, and rules and regulations and with the Company Group's Code of Business Conduct & Ethics (as such Code applies to consultants of the Company). |
(c) | Confidential Information. In connection with the Consulting Services described herein, the Employee will receive, and the Company hereby agrees to provide, certain Company Information (as defined in Section 5(a)(i) below) on an as-needed basis during the term of the Consulting Period. The Employee agrees to be bound by the terms of Section 5(a) below, and further promises that he will not disclose such Confidential Information to any person inside or outside the Company without its express written consent to do so, and further agrees that he will not use the Confidential Information for any purpose other than the performance of the Consulting Services. |
(d) | Performance of Consulting Services. The Consulting Services shall be required at such times and such places as shall not result in unreasonable inconvenience to the Employee, recognizing the Employee's other business commitments that he may have to accord priority over the performance of the Consulting Services. In order to minimize interference with the Employee's other commitments, the Consulting Services, to the extent practicable and not prejudicial to the Company Group, may be rendered by personal consultation at his residence or office wherever maintained, or by correspondence through mail, telephone, e-mail or other similar mode of communication at times most convenient to him. It is hereby understood and agreed that during the Consulting Period, the Employee shall have the right to engage in full-time or part-time employment with other business enterprises; provided that the Employee does not breach the restrictive covenants set forth in Section 5 hereof. The parties hereto reasonably anticipate that the level of bona fide services that the Employee is to perform for the Company and its subsidiaries during the Consulting Period will not exceed more than twenty percent (20%) of the average level of bona fide services that the Employee performed for the Company and its subsidiaries over the immediately preceding 36-month period (or, if less, since the date the Employee commenced employment with the Company). |
(e) | Status as Independent Contractor. The Employee acknowledges and agrees that his status at all times during the Consulting Period shall be that of an independent contractor, and that he may not, at any time, act as a representative for or on behalf of the Company Group for any purpose or transaction, and may not bind or otherwise obligate the Company Group in any manner whatsoever without obtaining the prior written approval of an authorized representative of the Company Group therefor. The Employee hereby waives any rights to be treated as an employee or deemed employee of the Company Group for any purpose during the Consulting Period, and that he shall not be entitled to the benefits of being an employee or deemed employee of the Company Group during the Consulting Period. The Employee hereby acknowledges and agrees that, except as provided in Section 2(c) hereof, he shall not be eligible for, shall not actively participate in, and shall not otherwise accrue benefits under, any of the Company Group's benefit plans during the Consulting Period. |
(f) | Consulting Fees. In consideration for the Consulting Services, subject to the terms hereof, the Company shall pay the Employee a consulting fee of $22,916.67 per month for the Consulting Period (the “Consulting Fees”). The Consulting Fees shall be paid to the Employee, in arrears, on or about the last business day of each month to which such Consulting Fees relate commencing with the last day of the month of the Release Effective Date and to the extent the Employee performs Consulting Services for only a portion of any month, the Consulting Fee payable to the Employee in respect of such month shall be pro-rated. The parties hereby acknowledge and agree that the Consulting Fees shall not be deemed to be wages, and therefore, shall not be subject to any withholdings or deductions. The Employee will receive a Form 1099 with regard to the Consulting Fees, and the Employee shall be solely responsible for, and shall pay, all taxes assessed on such fees under the applicable laws of any federal, state, or local jurisdiction. |
(g) | Expenses. The Company will be responsible for any reasonable and necessary out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Employee during the Consulting Period that are directly related to the provision of Consulting Services by the Employee |
(h) | Early Termination. The Consulting Period shall continue for the term described in Section 3(a) unless terminated earlier upon the Employee’s death or Disability or upon the Company’s election to terminate the Consulting Services upon a breach of the terms of this Agreement by the Employee. In the event of any such termination, the Consulting Fees shall cease upon the date on which the termination occurs. For purposes of this Agreement, “Disability” shall be defined as a physical or mental impairment that prevents the Employee from performing the Consulting Services, as determined by the Company in its sole discretion. |
(a) | Non-disclosure. As a part of this Agreement, the Employee acknowledges that he is being compensated, in part, in consideration for not disclosing information about the Company Group. The Employee specifically acknowledges and agrees that: |
(b) | Non-disparagement. The Employee agrees that he shall not make nor cause to be made any negative, adverse or derogatory comments or communications that could constitute disparagement of any member of the Company Group or their respective officers or directors, or that may be considered to be derogatory or detrimental to the good name or business reputation of any of the foregoing, including but not limited to the business affairs, financial condition or prospects of any of the Company Group, including comments to any media outlet, industry group, financial institution, client, customer or employee of the Company Group. The Company agrees that it will not make, and agrees to instruct the members of its board of directors, its executive officers and spokespersons of the Company Group to refrain from making, any external statements (or authorizing any statements to be reported as being attributed to the Company Group), that disparage, defame, or denigrate the Employee. Nothing in this Section 5(b) shall be construed to prevent the Employee from providing information in any governmental agency or court proceeding to the extent required by law, or giving truthful testimony in response to direct questions asked pursuant to a lawful subpoena or other legal process. |
(c) | Noncompetition. The Employee acknowledges that the Employee has and will continue to perform services of a unique nature for the Company that are irreplaceable, that he will receive Confidential Information in connection with his provision of these services, and the Employee's performance of such services to a competing business will result in irreparable harm to the Company. Accordingly, and ancillary to and in consideration for the mutual promises between the Employee and the Company contained in this Agreement (including, but not limited to, the Company’s promise to provide Confidential Information and the Employee’s promise not to disclose the same), the Employee agrees that the Employee will not, directly or indirectly, own, manage, operate, control, be employed by (whether as an employee, consultant, independent contractor or otherwise, and whether or not for compensation) or render services to any of the following entities or their affiliates: Bristow Group Inc., PHI, Inc., CHC Helicopter, HNZ Group, Gulf |
(d) | Nonsolicitation; Noninterference. During the period from the date hereof until the first anniversary of the Termination Date, the Employee agrees that the Employee shall not, directly or indirectly, individually or on behalf of any other person, firm, corporation or other entity, (i) solicit, aid or induce any employee, representative or agent of the Company Group to leave such employment or retention or, in the case of employees, to accept employment with or render services to or with any other person, firm, corporation or other entity unaffiliated with the Company Group, or hire or retain any such employee, or take any action to materially assist or aid any other person, firm, corporation or other entity in identifying, hiring or soliciting any such employee, or (ii) interfere, or aid or induce any other person or entity in interfering, with the relationship between the Company Group and any of their respective vendors, joint venturers or licensors. An employee, representative or agent shall be deemed covered by this Section 5(d) while so employed or retained and for a period of six (6) months thereafter. |
(a) | Reasonableness. The Employee hereby acknowledges that: (i) the restrictions provided in this Agreement (including, without limitation, those contained in Section 5 hereof) are reasonable in light of the necessity of the protection of the business of the Company Group; (ii) his ability to work and earn a living will not be unreasonably restrained by the application of these restrictions; and (iii) if a court concludes that any restrictions in this Agreement are overbroad or unenforceable for any reason, the court shall modify the relevant provision to the least extent necessary and such provision shall be enforced as modified. |
(b) | Injunctive and Other Relief. The Employee recognizes and agrees that should he fail to comply with the restrictions set forth in this Agreement (including, without |
(a) | Entire Agreement. This Agreement and the Release set forth the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof. This Agreement supersedes any and all prior understandings and agreements between the parties and neither party shall have any obligation toward the other except as set forth herein. The Company confirms and acknowledges that the Company is obligated to indemnify the Employee pursuant to that certain Officer Indemnification Agreement between the Company and the Employee dated September 14, 2015. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Employee agrees that the execution of this Agreement and the payments made hereunder shall constitute satisfaction in full of the Company's obligations to the Employee under any and all plans, programs or arrangements made by the Company under which the Employee may be entitled to severance or similar payment and/or benefits. This Agreement may not be superseded, amended, or modified except in writing signed by both parties. |
(b) | Severability and Reformation. Each of the provisions of this Agreement constitutes independent and separable covenants. Any portion of this Agreement that is determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to be overly broad in scope, duration, or area of applicability or in conflict with any applicable statute or rule will be deemed, if possible, to be modified or altered so that it is not overly broad or in conflict or, if not possible, to be omitted from this Agreement. The invalidity |
(c) | No Waiver. The failure of a party to insist upon strict adherence to any term of this Agreement on any occasion shall not be considered a waiver thereof or deprive that party of the right thereafter to insist upon strict adherence to that term or any other term of this Agreement. |
(d) | Successors and Assigns. This Agreement and any rights herein granted are personal to the parties hereto and will not be assigned, sublicensed, encumbered, pledged or otherwise transferred by either party without the prior written consent of the other party, and any attempt at violative assignment, sublicense, encumbrance or any other transfer, whether voluntary or by operation of law, will be void and of no force and effect, except that this Agreement may be assigned to by the Company to any successor in interest to the business of the Company. This Agreement shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of the Company, its successors, affiliates and any person or other entity that succeeds to all or substantially all of the business, assets or property of the Company. This Agreement and all of the Employee's rights hereunder shall inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by the Employee's heirs and estate. |
(e) | No Conflict; Governing Law. Each party represents that the performance of all of the terms of this Agreement will not result in a breach of, or constitute a conflict with, any other agreement or obligation of that party. This Agreement is made in, governed by, and is to be construed and enforced in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Texas, without giving effect to principles of conflicts of law. The Employee agrees that any legal action or proceeding brought under or in connection with this Agreement or the Employee's employment shall be initiated and maintained in a state or federal court located in Texas. |
(f) | Code Section 409A. The intent of the parties is that payments and benefits under this Agreement comply with Internal Revenue Code Section 409A and applicable guidance promulgated thereunder (collectively “Code Section 409A”) and, accordingly, to the maximum extent permitted, this Agreement shall be interpreted to be in compliance therewith. In no event whatsoever shall the Company be liable for any additional tax, interest or penalties that may be imposed on the Employee by Code Section 409A or any damages for failing to comply with Code Section 409A. To the extent any taxable expense reimbursement or in-kind benefits under this Agreement is subject to Code Section 409A, the amount thereof eligible in any calendar year shall not affect the amount eligible for any other calendar year, in no event shall any expenses be reimbursed after the last day of the calendar year following the year in which the Employee incurred such expenses, and in no event shall any right to reimbursement or receipt of in-kind benefits be subject to liquidation or exchange for another benefit. Notwithstanding any provisions of this Agreement to the contrary, if the Employee is a “specified employee” (within the meaning of Code Section 409A and determined pursuant to any policies adopted by the Company consistent with Code Section 409A), at the time of the Employee’s separation from service and if any portion of the payments or benefits to be received by the Employee upon separation from service would be considered deferred compensation under Code Section 409A and cannot be paid or provided to the Employee without the Employee incurring taxes, interest or penalties under Code Section 409A, amounts that would otherwise be payable pursuant to this Agreement |
(a) | Nothing in this Agreement or the Release will preclude, prohibit or restrict the Employee from (i) communicating with, any federal, state or local administrative or regulatory agency or authority, including but not limited to the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”); or (ii) participating or cooperating in any investigation conducted by any governmental agency or authority. |
(b) | Nothing in this Agreement, the Release, or any other agreement between the parties, prohibits or is intended in any manner to prohibit, the Employee from (i) reporting a possible violation of federal or other applicable law or regulation to any governmental agency or entity, including but not limited to the Department of Justice, the SEC, the U.S. Congress, and any governmental agency Inspector General, or (ii) making other disclosures that are protected under whistleblower provisions of federal law or regulation. Notwithstanding anything in the Release, this Agreement and the Release do not limit the Employee’s right to receive an award (including, without limitation, a monetary reward) for information provided to the SEC. The Employee does not need the prior authorization of anyone at the Company to make any such reports or disclosures, and the Employee is not required to notify the Company that the Employee has made such reports or disclosures. |
ERA HELICOPTERS, LLC | ||
/s/ Shefali Shah | ||
By: Shefali Shah | ||
Title: SVP, General Counsel Date: June 22, 2017 | ||
ANDREW PUHALA | ||
/s/ Andrew Puhala |
ANDREW PUHALA | ||
/s/ Andrew Puhala |