ORLANDO, FL – Darden CEO Clarence Otis will be leaving with a severance package amounting to almost $36 million in cash, stocks and other benefits.

As we previously reported, Otis announced in July that he would be leaving the company, a time when the Red Lobster sale had drawn criticism from many investment analysts and a lawsuit from the hedge fund Starboard Value. He agreed to stay until the end of December or until an appropriate successor was found.

The Institute for Policy Studies reports that Otis’ compensation and the pay for two other top executives let go in the past year will total about $68.4 million. 

The Orlando Sentinel breaks it down further saying, Otis will get $2.4 million in salary, plus the $28.2 million he owns in options and stock awards after agreeing to retire from Darden by the end of the year.  Adding in another $5.3 million in retirement funds brings his total severance package to just under $36 million.

The Sentinel also reports that Former Chief Operations Officer Andrew Madsen is leaving with about $20.8 million after his resignation in November 2013, and $11.6 million will go to Chief Restaurant Operations Officer David Pickens, who resigned in May.

Rich Jeffers, Darden’s Spokesman, told the Sentinel that the stock-award figures are based on the performance of Darden’s shares, which have increased 14.5% since Otis announced his resignation.

While it is not unusual for executives to leave companies with large severance packages, Robert Jackson, a law professor at Columbia University, said that it was unusual that there is a stipulation to the agreement that bars Otis from doing any work on behalf of Darden without being specifically called on by the company.

With a shareholder’s meeting next week, I will certainly be keeping my eye on Darden Restaurants.  Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for the latest updates.

Darden Restaurants