Common use of Specified Employee Status Clause in Contracts

Specified Employee Status. Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, in the event Executive is determined to be a Specified Employee, as that term is defined in Section 409A, payments to such Specified Employee under paragraphs 6 or 7, other than payments qualifying as short term deferrals or an exempt separation pay arrangement under Section 409A, shall not begin earlier than the first day of the seventh month after the date of termination. For purposes of the foregoing, the date upon which a determination is made as to the Specified Employee status of the Executive, the Identification Date (as defined in Section 409A) shall be December 31. 6. Effective with the consummation of the Merger, the Employment Agreement is hereby amended so that all references therein to the Corporation shall be deemed references to Tower, and Tower, as successor to Graystone Financial Corp., shall be responsible for all of the obligations of the Corporation to Executive under the Employment Agreement as specifically provided in Section 15(a) of the Employment Agreement. 7. Effective upon consummation of the Merger, Section 8(a)(i) of the Employment Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to revise the Non-Competition Area as follows: (i) enter into or be engaged (other than by the Corporation or the Bank), directly or indirectly, either for his own account or as agent, consultant, employee, partner, officer, director, proprietor, investor (except as an investor owning less than 5% of the stock of a publicly owned company) or otherwise of any person, firm, corporation or enterprise engaged in (1) the banking (including bank holding company) or financial services industry, or (2) any other activity in which Corporation or Bank or any of their subsidiaries are engaged during the Employment Period, in any county in which, at the date of termination of the Executive’s employment, a branch location, office, loan production office, or trust or asset and wealth management office of Corporation, Bank, or any of their subsidiaries are located (“Non-Competition Area”); or 8. Except as amended by this Amendment, the Employment Agreement shall continue in full force and effect and shall continue after consummation of the Merger. This Amendment may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original but all of which shall constitute one and the same agreement. 9. This Amendment shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto, their respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors and, to the extent permitted hereunder, assigns.