Employment Agreement between the Company and Paul McGrath



 EXHIBIT 10.4 
 EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT 
 THIS AGREEMENT
made as of the 21st day of February 2008, by and between UNIVERSAL STAINLESS & ALLOY PRODUCTS, INC., a Delaware corporation (the
“Company”), and Paul A. McGrath (the “Executive”). 
 WITNESSETH: 
 In consideration of the covenants and agreements herein contained, and intending to be legally bound hereby, the Company and Executive agree as follows:

 Article 1. - Employment 
 1.1. Employment. The Company agrees to employ Executive, and Executive agrees to serve the Company, for the period stated in Article 2 hereof (the “Term of Employment”) and upon the other terms and conditions herein
provided. 
 1.2. Position and Responsibilities. The Company employs Executive, and Executive agrees to serve as Vice President of
Administration, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the Company and to accept such other responsibilities as may be assigned to Executive by the Company from time to time during the Term of Employment. 
 1.3. Duties. During the Term of Employment, Executive shall devote all of his business time, attention, skill and efforts to the faithful
performance of his duties hereunder. 
 Article 2. - Term 
 The initial term (the “Initial Term”) of this Agreement shall commence on the date hereof and expire on December 31, 2010, unless this
Agreement shall have been sooner terminated as hereinafter set forth or extended as described in the next sentence. On November 1, 2008, and on the first day of each month thereafter (each, an “Extension Date”), the term of this Agreement
shall be extended for one additional month unless one party delivers written notice to the other before the next succeeding Extension Date of its intention not to renew the term. If a notice of intention not to renew the term is delivered, this
Agreement shall terminate on the date that is the last day of the month fifteen (15) months after the month in which such notice is delivered. The intention of this extension language is to provide for a term of this Agreement which is, after
November 1, 2008, not less than fourteen (14) months or more than fifteen (15) months, unless sooner terminated as hereinafter set forth. 
 Article 3. - Compensation 
 3.1. Salary. As compensation to the Executive for the
performance of services hereunder, the Company shall pay to the Executive a base annual salary (the “Salary”) of $176,000.00. Installments of the Salary shall be paid to the Executive in accordance with the standard procedure of the
Company, which at the present time is once every two weeks. During the period of this Agreement, Executive’s salary shall be reviewed at least annually and may be 

  

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increased if the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) acting after approval of the Compensation Committee (the “Compensation
Committee”), determines that an increase is appropriate on the basis of the types of factors it generally takes into account in increasing the salaries of employees similarly situated in the Company. 
 3.2. Reimbursement of Expenses. The Company will reimburse the Executive for those customary and necessary business expenses incurred by him in
the performance of his duties and activities on behalf of the Company. Except as provided in this Agreement, such expenses will be reimbursed only on presentation by the Executive of appropriate documentation to substantiate such expenses pursuant
to the policies and procedures of the Company governing reimbursement of business expenses to its executives. 
 3.3. Participation in
Plans. The Executive shall be entitled to participate in any life, medical, dental, health, hospitalization, travel, accident and/or disability insurance plans and in any sick leave and/or salary continuation plan, vacation (which shall not be
less than three (3) weeks per year), holiday pay, retirement or employee benefit plan or program generally offered by the Company to its salaried employees. In addition, Executive shall be entitled to participate in the variable incentive
compensation plan and the Company shall pay the membership dues for Executive at South Point Golf Club. Charges related to the use of the Club shall be the responsibility of the Executive. 
 Article 4. - Termination of Employment 
 4.1. Definitions. For the
purposes hereof: 
 (a) “Disability” shall be deemed to have occurred when the Executive is eligible, due to a health
condition, to collect benefits under the Company’s short term disability plan and has been determined by the Board of Directors to be unable to perform substantially the duties associated with the Executives position for a period of three
months. 
 (b) “Cause” shall mean any of the following: (i) Executive’s personal dishonesty or willful misconduct;
(ii) Executive’s willful violation of any law or material rule or regulation, provided that such violation is demonstrably injurious to the assets, operations or business prospects of the Company; (iii) the conversion or embezzlement
for the personal benefit of the Executive of corporate funds or property or a material business opportunity of the Company; (iv) the misuse by the Executive for his personal benefit of any trade secrets or other information of the Company in
violation of the provisions of Article 7 of this Agreement; or (v) Executive’s material breach of any other provision of this Agreement which is not cured within thirty (30) days of receipt of notice of such breach from Company.

 (c) “Good Reason” shall, absent the Executive’s consent to such action, mean the occurrence of any one of the
following: (i) following a Change of Control, the removal of the Executive as Vice President of Administration, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the Company (by reason other than death, Disability or Cause); (ii) any breach by
the Company of a material obligation under this Agreement; (iii) a substantial and material alteration in the nature or status of Executive’s duties and responsibilities that renders the Executive’s position to be of substantially
less responsibility or scope; (iv) a material reduction by the Company in the 

  

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Executive’s Salary, except for proportional across-the-board salary reductions similarly affecting all senior executives of the Company; or (v) any
material reduction by the Company of the benefits, taken as a whole, enjoyed by the Executive on the date of this Agreement under any savings, life insurance, medical, health and accident, disability or other employee welfare benefit plans or
programs, including vacation programs, provided that this paragraph (v) shall not apply to any proportional across the board reduction or action similarly affecting all senior executives of the Company. 
 Notwithstanding the foregoing, no event of “Good Reason” shall be deemed to have occurred unless Executive provides to the Chairman of the Compensation
Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company written notice of the facts and circumstances which Executive believes constitutes Good Reason under this Section 4.1(c) within 30 days of such initial occurrence and such facts and
circumstances are not corrected or otherwise cured by the Company within thirty (30) days of receipt thereof. Termination by Executive for Good Reason must occur within 90 days of the initial occurrence of the Good Reason event. 
 For purposes of this Agreement, a Change of Control shall be deemed to have occurred on the earlier of (x) if, in any transaction or series of related transactions
consummated in a ninety day period, more than fifty percent (50%) of the then outstanding voting common stock of the Company is sold to a person or group; (y) a merger or consolidation of the Company and another entity in which the Company
is not the surviving corporation or in which more than fifty percent(50%) of the equity ownership of the Company changes, or (z) the sale of 50% or more of all of the assets of the Company. 
 (d) “Notice of Termination” shall mean written notice which shall indicate the specific termination or resignation provisions in this
Agreement relied upon and shall set forth in reasonable detail the facts and circumstances claimed to provide a basis for such termination or resignation under the provision so indicated and the Company shall submit to the Executive a certified
statement signed by the Chairman of the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company approving such termination in the case of a Termination by the Company for Cause or Without Cause. 
 (e) “Date of Termination” shall mean the date specified in the Notice of Termination as the effective date the Executive’s
employment is terminated for any reason or the Executive’s effective date of resignation, which ever is earlier. 
 Article 5. -
Compensation Upon Termination 
 5.1. Death. If the Executive’s employment hereunder terminates by reason of his death,
his beneficiaries shall be entitled to receive from the Company such amounts as are then provided pursuant to plans, programs or arrangements currently in effect or as approved from time to time by the Board of Directors. 
 5.2. Disability. If the Executive’s employment hereunder terminates by reason of his Disability, the Executive shall be entitled to receive
such amounts as are then provided pursuant to Company’s then existing disability plans, programs or arrangements. Notwithstanding any provisions herein to the contrary, the Executive shall be entitled to receive all benefits to which the


  

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Executive is entitled as a terminated employee under the terms of any of the Company’s qualified employee benefit plans and any other plan, program or
arrangement relating to retirement or other benefits including, without limitation, any employee stock ownership plan or any plan now in effect or which is established (with approval of the Board of Directors) as a supplement to any of the
aforenamed plans, except as otherwise provided in such plans as a result of the Executive’s termination of employment. 
 5.3.
Cause. If the Executive’s employment hereunder is terminated by the Company for Cause, the Company shall pay to the Executive his full base Salary through the Date of Termination but at a rate no greater than that in effect at the time
Notice of Termination is given, and the Company shall have no further obligations to the Executive under this Agreement. 
 5.4. By the
Company Without Cause or by the Executive by Resignation for Good Reason. If the Executive’s employment hereunder is terminated by the Company without Cause or is terminated by the Executive pursuant to his resignation for Good Reason, then
the Executive shall be entitled to the benefits provided below, which shall constitute complete satisfaction of the obligations of the Company to the Executive under this Agreement: 
 (a) The Company shall pay the Executive his full base Salary through the Date of Termination at the rate in effect at the time Notice of Termination is
given. 
 (b) Subsequent to the Date of Termination, the Company shall pay as severance pay to the Executive, his full base salary at the
rate in effect at the time Notice of Termination is given, paid on the Company’s regular pay date schedule for a period of fifteen months. Such payment shall be less applicable taxes and mandatory deductions. The Company and Executive agree
that this section (5.4 (b)) of this Agreement may, at the request of either party hereto, be modified to prevent the Executive from incurring any liability for tax payments prior to the time when the payments are made. Any such mutually agreed
written modification signed by the parties hereto, will not reduce the amount of severance due Executive or extend the payment schedule. 
 (c) The Company will provide health care benefits under the group policies covering the other corporate employees covering Medical, Dental, Vision and Prescription Drugs, subject to any changes made to the group policies, as provided prior
to the Date of Termination for the Executive and eligible dependents, that were covered prior to any Date of Termination, for a period of fifteen (15) months at no cost to the Executive. This period will not reduce the eligible COBRA period.

 (d) The Executive shall not be required to mitigate the amount of any payments provided for in this Agreement by seeking other employment
or otherwise, nor shall the amount of any payment provided for in this Agreement be reduced by any compensation earned by the Executive as the result of employment by another employer, or otherwise. 
 (e) Notwithstanding any provisions herein to the contrary, the Executive shall be entitled to receive all benefits to which the Executive is entitled as
a terminated employee under the terms of any of the Company’s qualified employee benefit plans and any other plan, program or arrangement relating to retirement or other benefits including, without limitation, any 

  

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employee stock ownership plan or any plan now in effect or which is established (with approval of the Board of Directors) as a supplement to any of the
aforenamed plans, except as otherwise provided in such plans as a result of the Executive’s termination of employment. 
 Article
6. - Duties of Executive After 
 Termination of Employment 
 Following any termination of Executive’s employment and for a period of ninety (90) days thereafter, the Executive shall fully cooperate with
the Company in all matters relating to the winding up and orderly transfer of the Executive’s work on behalf of the Company. Not later than the effective date of any termination of the employment, the Executive will immediately deliver to the
Company any and all of the Company’s property of any kind or nature whatsoever in the Executive’s possession, custody or control, including, without limitation any and all Confidential Information as that term is defined in Section 7
of this Agreement. 
 Article 7. - Confidential Information; Invention Assignment 
 7.1. Confidential Relationship. Executive understands and agrees that all company manuals, company policies, marketing plans and surveys, product
designs, schematics, specifications and product location and installation data, formulae, processes, methods, machines, compositions, customer information, ideas, inventions, financial information and plans of the Company and all records,
correspondence, files, customer lists, data and other information pertaining to or concerning the Company, its principals, vendors and customers (collectively the “Confidential Information”) contain valuable confidential information
that is owned by the Company, and, therefore, that during the period of employment hereunder and at all times thereafter, Executive shall not utilize such Confidential Information for his own benefit or for the benefit of any person or entity other
than the Company, nor shall he divulge or communicate any such Confidential Information to any person or entity without the express authorization of the Company. Confidential Information shall not include any information that is or becomes generally
available to the public other than as a result of a disclosure by Executive. The Executive agrees that, on the termination of his employment, he will immediately surrender to the Company any and all Confidential Information in his possession
pertaining to the Company and its business. 
 7.2. Assignment of Rights. All inventions, discoveries, designs, developments,
technology, computer programs, writings and reports that are made or conceived of by the Executive in the course of his employment with the Company, whether or not patentable or copyrightable, shall become and remain the sole property of the Company
without additional compensation to Executive. The Executive recognizes that all such works shall be considered works-for-hire and hereby transfers and assigns any right, title, copyright and interest that Executive acquires in such works to the
Company and will, from time to time, give the Company all reasonable assistance, execute all papers and do all things that may reasonably be required to protect and preserve the rights of the Company in such works. 
 7.3. No Breach of Other Obligations. The Executive represents that, in the course of performing services for the Company, he will not breach any
agreement he may have with others with respect to confidential information, and will not bring to the Company or use in any way any materials or documents obtained from others under an agreement of confidentiality. 
  

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 Article 8. - Source of Payments 
 All payments provided for under this Agreement shall be paid in cash from the general funds of the Company and no special or separate fund shall be
established and no other segregation of assets shall be made to assure payment. No trust or fiduciary relationship with respect to payments shall be deemed created hereby and, to the extent that any person acquires a right to receive payments
hereunder, such right shall be no greater than the rights of a general creditor of the Company. 
 Article 9. - Miscellaneous 

 9.1. Indulgences, Etc. Neither the failure nor any delay on the part of either party to exercise any right, remedy, power or
privilege under this Agreement shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right, remedy, power or privilege preclude any other or further exercise of the same or of any other right, remedy, power or privilege,
nor shall any waiver of any right, remedy, power or privilege with respect to any occurrence be construed as a waiver of such right, remedy, power or privilege with respect to any other occurrence. 
 9.2. Notices. All notices or communications hereunder shall be in writing, addressed as follows: 
 To the Company: 
 Chairman of the Compensation
Committee 
 of the Board of Directors 
 c/o Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc. 
 600 Mayer Street 
 Bridgeville, PA 15017 
 To the Executive:

 Paul A. McGrath 
 176 Fawn
Valley Drive 
 McMurray, PA 15317 
 Any such
notice or communication shall be sent by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, addressed as above (or to such other address as such party may designate in writing from time to time), and the actual date of receipt,
as shown by the receipt therefor, shall determine the time at which notice was given. 
 9.3. Assignment; Agreement. This Agreement
shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the heirs and personal representatives of the Executive and the successors and assigns of the Company, but neither this Agreement nor any rights hereunder shall be assignable or otherwise subject to
hypothecation by the Executive. 
  

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 9.4. Entire Agreement; Amendment. This Agreement represents the entire agreement of the parties
with respect to the subject matter hereof. This Agreement may be amended or any provision hereof waived at any time only by written agreement of the parties hereto. 
 9.5. Governing Law. This Agreement and its validity, interpretation, performance and enforcement shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, other than the conflict of laws provisions of
such laws. 
 9.6. Severability. If, for any reason, any provision of this Agreement is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect
any other provision of this Agreement not held so invalid, and each such other provision shall to the full extent consistent with law continue in full force and effect. If any provision of this Agreement shall be held invalid in part, such
invalidity shall in no way affect the remainder of such provision that is not held so invalid, and the remainder of such provision, together with all other provisions of this Agreement, shall to the full extent consistent with law continue in full
force and effect. 
 9.7. Headings. The Article and Section headings in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only; they
form no part of this Agreement and shall not affect its interpretation. 
 9.8. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or
more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument. 
 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company and the Executive have duly executed this Agreement as of the day and year first written above. 
  

			
	 UNIVERSAL STAINLESS & ALLOY PRODUCTS, INC.

		 	
	By:	 	 /s/ Dennis M. Oates

	Title:	 	President and Chief Executive Officer
	
	EXECUTIVE
	
	 /s/ Paul A. McGrath

	Paul A. McGrath


  

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