Depending on circumstances, firings and resignations are typically accompanied by severance packages

   According to the International City/County Management Association, the average tenure for city and county managers in 2006 was about 7.75 years.
    Not in Onslow County.
    Jacksonville's City Manager Kristoff Bauer was ousted Tuesday by the City Council after serving a little more than three years in the position. Prior to that, the town manager at North Topsail Beach resigned in September after just 90 days on the job.
    Onslow County Manager Frank Clifton was forced to resign his position in September after serving about three years in the position; and David Walker, executive director for the Onslow Water and Sewer Authority, was forced to resigned in September after serving the organization since its inception in 2004.
    "It's just something that's part of the profession. The people that are in that profession understand it," saie Charles Archer, associate director at the North Carolina League of Municipalities.
    "A number of city and county managers typically would have an employment agreement that spells out a lot of different things, and it's fairly typical to have a severance package or severance clause in the employment agreement," Archer said.
    Bauer, whose salary was $140,450, will receive nine months worth of his salary and his $500 monthly vehicle allowance, payment for 240 hours of accrued vacation, and coverage under the city's health and life insurance for the duration of his severance, according to William Ratliff, human rsources director for the city.
    Upon Clifton's resignation he received just over $148,000 in perks and benefits, and Walker received a six-month severance package based on his annual salary of $100,776, accrued vacation and sick pay and remained part of ONWASA's insurance plan.

Contact Molly DeWitt at 910-219-8455 or mdewitt@freedomenc.com.