Minneapolis City Council to stop using nondisparagement clauses in employee separation agreements

The council also approved the separation agreement with former police Chief Janeé Harteau.

September 21, 2017 at 3:38AM
FILE - In this March 30, 2016, file photo, Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau speaks at a news conference, in Minneapolis. In an interview aired Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, the former police chief said that she did everything she could to rush home from a hiking trip in Colorado last month after one of her officers killed an Australian woman who had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault. It was her first interview since her resignation. (Elizabeth Flores /Star Tribune via AP, File)
Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau speaks at a news conference March 30, 2016, in Minneapolis. Harteau resigned as police chief July 21, 2017. (Elizabeth Flores/Star Tribune) (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The Minneapolis City Council on Wednesday approved a separation agreement with former Police Chief Janeé Harteau, minus a controversial nondisparagement clause — and agreed not to use such clauses going forward.

The nondisparagement clause would have prevented Harteau from saying anything negative about Mayor Betsy Hodges, council members or city department heads, and prevented them from saying anything negative about her. Hodges, whose idea it was to include the clause, agreed to remove it amid criticism.

"Gag orders prevent transparency [and] accountability and also inhibit public servants from learning from mistakes," said Council Member Jacob Frey, who co-authored a resolution prohibiting nondisparagement clauses for public employees. "Following the gag order that Mayor Hodges placed in Chief Harteau's severance agreement, I wanted to set a standard of transparency so this wouldn't happen again."

Frey, a first-term council member, is one of more than a dozen candidates challenging Hodges in her campaign for re-election.

Council Member Andrew Johnson, Frey's co-author, said nondisparagement clauses "are actually really problematic, even in the private sector."

"I think it's important that we take a stand against these clauses, especially in the public realm, where transparency is of the utmost importance," he said.

The council passed the resolution unanimously.

Before the vote, Council President Barb Johnson, who previously raised concerns about including the clause in the agreement with Harteau, encouraged other council members to support the resolution.

"I think it's a sensible solution," she said.

Harteau resigned July 21, six days after a Minneapolis police officer shot and killed Justine Ruszczyk Damond in south Minneapolis. Her severance agreement includes nearly $183,000 in payments through the end of 2018 and a year of medical and dental insurance coverage.

Emma Nelson • 612-673-4509

about the writer

about the writer

Emma Nelson

Editor

Emma Nelson is a reporter and editor at the Star Tribune.

See More

More from Minneapolis

card image

From small businesses to giants like Target, retailers are benefitting from the $10 billion industry for South Korean pop music, including its revival of physical album sales.