After five tests as an assistant coach to Scott Robertson, Leon MacDonald sensationally exited the All Blacks setup last week. The split, reportedly due to irreconcilable differences with head coach Robertson, has left fans and analysts alike buzzing.
Despite the mutual agreement, New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is reportedly shellingout a hefty severance package, rumoured to be in the six-figure range as revealed by the Herald yesterday.
Why is the payout so big if it’s mutual?
Auckland-based employment lawyer Jeremy Ansell, a senior associate at Duncan Cotterill, thought the payment was a strategic move by NZR to avoid any potential legal battles against MacDonald who is believed to be under contract until the 2027 World Cup in Brisbane.
“If it was a truly voluntary resignation, then he just gets paid whatever the notice period is and there wouldn’t be any grounds for higher compensation. If he just decided he wanted to leave he would just tender his resignation and they probably pay out whatever the notice period is but reading between the lines, there’s probably something that’s going on behind the scenes.
“I think there’s either been a term in the agreement that has calculated the severance pay. For example, if the employee doesn’t reach the end of the fixed term through no fault of their own, they will be paid a minimum of X compensation or X portion of the full term. The second possibility is that he’s sought payment of the full fixed term until 2027 and they’ve negotiated and agreed a lesser payment somewhere in the middle or around two years’ worth of pay.”
New Zealand All Blacks assistant coach Leon MacDonald. Photo / Photosport
So, what really happened?
It seems like a classic case of incompatibility. Ansell explains that fixed contracts can only be ended under specific conditions and the likely scenario is that NZR and MacDonald negotiated a severance package to avoid any messy legal disputes.
“The problem with the situation is that it doesn’t seem like [MacDonald] has done anything wrong. It’s almost like it’s incompatibility. From what I’ve read, there was a disagreement about coaching methods and it’s almost like the parties aren’t quite the right fit. Because of that, I very much doubt that NZR would have any legal grounds to terminate the contract themselves because you can only terminate the contract in certain ways, right?”
Can you just fire someone you don’t like?
Simply put, no. When dismissing an employee, a business must follow a fair and proper process, and have a good reason for the dismissal. Ansell explains that incompatibility is a tricky legal ground for termination.
“[Incompatibility] is a really hard way to get rid of somebody. It does sometimes happen when the employer and the employee realise that there’s a breakdown in the relationship for whatever reason and that the employee is not going to resign. Then you have to cut a deal to keep everybody happy.
“I haven’t seen anything in the reporting that suggests that he wasn’t capable of doing his coaching role properly because that’s another way an employee can get somebody out is to performance manage them and go through a stage process but it wouldn’t be that either by the sounds, but it’s really just a breakdown or a disagreement and coaching methods and philosophies.
What does this all reveal?
MacDonald’s departure hints at deeper issues within the All Blacks coaching set-up – at the very least the working relationship between Robertson and MacDonald and whether similar conflicts might arise again.
Luke Kirkness is the Sports Planning Editor for the NZ Herald. He’s an award-winning journalist who also covered consumer affairs for the Herald and served as an assistant news director.
