Loretta Rogers claims son misled board about CEO’s performance
Posted October 27, 2021 6:06 am.
Last Updated October 27, 2021 1:33 pm.
As the family feud for control of Rogers Communications continues to heat up — the mother of the now ousted chairman says her son misled her about the performance of the company’s CEO.
In court filings, Edward Rogers claims his family members were on board with a plan to dump current CEO Joe Natale. He says his family, along with the board actually approved Natale’s retirement, only to backpedal on the plans a couple of days later.
Edward’s mother, Loretta Rogers, tells the Globe and Mail in a statement that her son’s claims are “as unfortunate as they are untrue.” She says he misled the family about Natale’s performance — suggesting that the CEO was the reason Rogers was lagging behind competitors Bell and Telus.
Arguments over the rightful chair of the company will be heard in court in British Columbia beginning on Monday.
RELATED: Rogers CEO addresses boardroom feud, says he has board’s ‘strong unequivocal support’
Edward Rogers filed a petition in the B.C. Supreme Court on Tuesday in hopes of regaining control of the company after he was removed as board chair last week.
He is seeking a ruling from the court that would legitimize a company board he formed by replacing five of its members.
The existing Rogers board ousted Edward as the chair last week after a failed attempt from him to undermine Natale. Reports surfaced that Edward had tried to put former chief financial officer Tony Staffieri into the role of CEO in addition to replacing other members of the leadership team.
The ousted chair held a meeting with five people he tapped as board members and claimed on Sunday that he had been elected the chair of that board. The company subsequently issued a statement saying any meeting between Edward and the handpicked board was invalid.
The power struggle over the company has raised a number of questions over who could be in charge moving forward.
Although the Rogers family are minority owners in the company — the fight is in their hands as they own 97 per cent of Class A voting shares and 10 per cent of outstanding Class B shares.
Edward remains chair of the Rogers Control Trust, the controlling shareholder. In order for him to be removed as trust chair, seven members (more than 67 per cent) of the 10-person board would need to vote in favour of ousting him.
The uncertainty in leadership has contributed to pushing Rogers shares down nearly 6 per cent in Monday trading.
The company moved ahead with plans to acquire Shaw Communications Inc. in the spring. The $26 billion deal is still awaiting regulatory approvals.
Edward’s mother and sisters are both on the original board and continue to express their support for the existing board and Natale as CEO.
In a series of tweets on Sunday, Martha Rogers, sister of Edward, vowed to keep fighting her brother for “destroying” her father’s company. She also promised to share “the truth” about her brother’s “Trump scandal” in the spring, when he and his family were photographed with the former U.S. President.
Rogers Communications is incorporated in British Columbia — the reason for the court fight beginning in that province.
Rogers is the parent company of CityNews.
With files from the Canadian Press and CityNews reporter Kevin Misener
