A St. Petersburg accounting firm is being sued by one of its employees for allegedly rigging the company’s pay system to cut his salary.
According to a suit filed by Richard Caton against his employer, Gregory Sharer & Stuary, P.A. he was the only partner at the firm to suffer a pay cut in 2015. Prior to this year Caton says he earned $200,000 a year. That was slashed to $150,000 despite Caton’s claim that he is the firm’s top income producer.
According to the suit, a team was formed in 2013 consisting of four other employees – James Newman, Tim Farrell, Paula Popovich and Carlos Villa. That group’s task was to make recommendations on how to best distribure the firm’s discretionary profits.
Caton described the group’s meetings as “unscheduled” and “secret.” Following those meetings Caton was given a reduced bonus and his salary was slashed. The cuts were allegedly contradictory to Caton’s employment contract with the firm where he has worked for more than 20 years.
Caton’s lawsuit may come as a surprise to some. The small business has been named a top workplace by the Tampa Bay Times every year since 2010 based on feedback from its 52 employees.
Caton says he believes the change in pay structure was intentionally orchestrated to negatively affect his salary. He believes his colleagues were trying to push him into quitting.
If that was the goal, his co-workers got what they wanted. Caton turned in his resignation on April 28, making his last day of work July 27.
He also argues the company has “frozen” him out of management, though it’s not entirely clear what that means. He also claims he was offered insufficient payment for the stock he holds in the company.
Caton is seeking damages for lost compensation plus interest and attorney’s fees. He’s also seeking to have his non-compete and non-solicitation agreements waived.
The lawsuit alleges Caton is “highly likely to succeed on the merits of this action.”
Based on a search of Caton’s name in a database of Florida corporations, Caton does not appear to have formed a new company.
Caton is the past president of the Suncoast Chapter of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Caton is represented by Shirin Vesely of the law firm Keane Reese Vesely & Gerdes. That’s the same law firm that employs St. Pete City Council Chair Charlie Gerdes.
