Exhibit 10.47
CHANGE IN CONTROL
AGREEMENT
AGREEMENT made and entered into as
of this 16th day of October, 2008 by and between MSC INDUSTRIAL
DIRECT CO., INC., a New York corporation (the
“Corporation”), and Steven Armstrong having an address
at 133 Water Street #11B, Brooklyn, New York, 11201 (the
“Associate”).
W I T N
E S S E
T H:
WHEREAS, the Associate has been
employed by the Corporation in a senior Associate capacity and
desires to remain in the employ of the Corporation in such
capacity; and
WHEREAS, the Corporation desires to
induce the Associate to so remain in the employ of the
Corporation.
NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto
hereby agree as follows:
FIRST:
Inducement Payments .
A.
If, within two (2) years after a Change in Control, the
Associate’s “Circumstances of Employment” (as
hereinafter defined) shall have changed, the Associate may
terminate his employment by written notice to the Corporation given
no later than ninety (90) days following such change in the
Associate’s Circumstances of Employment. In the event
of such termination by the Associate of his employment or if,
within two (2) years after a Change in Control, the
Corporation shall terminate the Associate’s employment other
than for “Cause” (as hereinafter defined), the
Corporation shall pay to the Associate, subject to the provisions
of paragraph F of this Article FIRST and compliance by
Associate with Article THIRD hereof, in cash, the
“Special Severance Payment” (as hereinafter defined) as
provided in Section E below.
B.
Change in Control shall be deemed to occur upon:
(a)
a change in ownership of the Corporation, which shall occur on the
date that any one person, or more than one person acting as a
“Group” (as defined under Section 409A of the Code
(as defined hereunder)), other than Mitchell Jacobson or Marjorie
Gershwind or a member of the Jacobson or Gershwind families or any
trust established principally for members of the Jacobson or
Gershwind families or an executor, administrator or personal
representative of an estate of a member of the Jacobson or
Gershwind families and/or their respective affiliates, acquires
ownership of stock of the Corporation that, together with stock
held by such person or Group, constitutes more than 50% of the
total fair market value or total voting power of the stock of the
Corporation; provided, however, that, if any one person or more
than one person acting as a Group, is considered to own more than
50% of the total fair market value or total voting power of the
stock of the Corporation, the acquisition of additional stock by
the same person or persons is not considered to cause a change in
the ownership of the Corporation;
(b)
a change in the effective control of the Corporation, which shall
occur on the date that (1) any one person, or more than one
person acting as a Group, other than Mitchell Jacobson or Marjorie
Gershwind or a member of the Jacobson or Gershwind families or any
trust established principally for members of the Jacobson or
Gershwind families or an executor, administrator or personal
representative of an estate of a member of the Jacobson or
Gershwind families and/or their respective affiliates, acquires (or
has acquired during the 12-month
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period ending on
the date of the most recent acquisition by such person or persons)
ownership of stock of the Corporation possessing 50% or more of the
total voting power of the stock of the Corporation; or (2) a
majority of the members of the Board is replaced during any
12-month period by directors whose appointment or election is not
endorsed by a majority of the members of the Board prior to the
date of the appointment or election; provided, however, that, if
one person, or more than one person acting as a Group, is
considered to effectively control the Corporation, the acquisition
of additional control of the Corporation by the same person or
persons is not considered a change in the effective control of the
Corporation; or
(c)
a change in the ownership of a substantial portion of the
Corporation’s assets, which shall occur on the date that any
one person, or more than one person acting as a Group, acquires (or
has acquired during the 12-month period ending on the date of the
most recent acquisition by such person or persons) assets from the
Corporation that have a total Gross Fair Market Value (as defined
hereunder) equal to or more than 80% of the total Gross Fair Market
Value of all of the assets of the Corporation immediately prior to
such acquisition or acquisitions; provided, however, that, a
transfer of assets by the Corporation is not treated as a change in
the ownership of such assets if the assets are transferred to
(1) a shareholder of the Corporation (immediately before the
asset transfer) in exchange for or with respect to its stock;
(2) an entity, 50% or more of the total value or voting power
of which is owned, directly or indirectly, by the Corporation;
(3) a person, or more than one person acting as a Group, that
owns,
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directly or
indirectly, 50% or more of the total value or voting power of all
the outstanding stock of the Corporation; or (4) an entity, at
least 50% of the total value or voting power of which is owned,
directly or indirectly, by a person described in Article FIRST
B(c)(3).
For purposes of this
Article FIRST B, “Gross Fair Market Value” means
the value of the assets of the Corporation, or the value of the
assets being disposed of, determined without regard to any
liabilities associated with such assets. For purposes of this
Article FIRST B, stock ownership is determined under
Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended
(the “Code”).
C.
The Associate’s “Circumstances of Employment”
shall have changed if there shall have occurred any of the
following events: (a) a material reduction or change in the
Associate’s employment duties or reporting responsibilities;
(b) a reduction in the annual base salary made available by
the Corporation to the Associate from the annual base salary in
effect immediately prior to a Change in Control; or (c) a
material diminution in the Associate’s status, working
conditions or other economic benefits from those in effect
immediately prior to a Change in Control.
D.
“Cause” shall mean (i) the commission by the
Associate of any act or omission that would constitute a felony or
any crime of moral turpitude under Federal law or the law of the
state or foreign law in which such action occurred,
(ii) dishonesty, disloyalty, fraud, embezzlement, theft,
disclosure of trade secrets or confidential information or other
acts or omissions that result in a breach of fiduciary or other
material duty to the Corporation and/or a subsidiary; or
(iii) continued reporting to work or working under the
influence of alcohol, an
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illegal drug, an intoxicant
or a controlled substance which renders the Associate incapable of
performing his or her material duties to the satisfaction of the
Corporation and/or its subsidiaries.
E.
The “Special Severance Payment” shall mean:
(X) payment equal to the sum of (i) the product of one
and one-half (1.5) and the annual base salary in effect immediately
prior to a change in the Associate’s Circumstances of
Employment or the termination other than for Cause of the
Associate’s employment by the Corporation, as the case may
be, and (ii) the product of one and one half (1.5) and the
targeted bonus for the Associate in effect immediately prior to a
change in Associate Circumstances of Employment or termination
other than for Cause, as the case may be, such payment to be made
in equal installments in accordance with the Corporation’s
regular payroll policies (but not less frequently than biweekly)
for a period of eighteen months, with the first such installment
being made on the fifth (5 th ) business day following
the six-month anniversary of Associate’s termination of
employment; (Y) payment of a pro rata portion of the
Associate’s targeted bonus in effect immediately prior to the
date such change in Associate’s Circumstances of Employment
or termination of employment other than for Cause occurs (the
“In Year Bonus”), calculated as the product of
(a) the In Year Bonus multiplied by (b) a fraction
the numerator of which is the number of whole months elapsed in the
fiscal year up to the date such change in Associate’s
Circumstances of Employment or termination occurs, and the
denominator of which is twelve (12), such payment to be made on the
fifth (5 th ) business day following the six
(6) months’ anniversary of termination of employment;
and (Z) for the two (2) year period or the remaining term
of the automobile lease at issue, whichever is less following
Associate’s date of termination of employment (other than
termination for Cause), the Corporation shall, at Associate’s
option, (a) pay Associate a monthly automobile allowance in
amounts equal to those in effect immediately prior to such
termination,
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if applicable, or
(b) continue to make the monthly lease payments under the
automobile lease in effect for the benefit of Associate immediately
prior to such termination, provided that if any payment (or portion
thereof) otherwise due under this clause (Z) during the first
six (6) months following the Associate’s
termination
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