Mayor told staff member to 'lose some weight', misconduct probe finds

A regional South Australian mayor said a staff member "needs to go back to netball and lose some weight", an investigation into alleged breaches of behavioural standards has found. 

District Council of Robe Mayor Lisa Ruffell has led the council, located about 350 kilometres south-east of Adelaide on the state's Limestone Coast, since 2023. 

In June, the council ordered an independent investigation into allegations she had undermined the professional reputation of council employees, contributed to distress, created governance instability and contributed to psychosocial risks for staff. 

On Wednesday, the council published an investigation summary report as part of papers for a special meeting scheduled for Monday. 

The Kelledy Jones Lawyers investigation outlined its findings across seven pages, including that Ms Ruffell said a staff member "needs to go back to netball and lose some weight" while at a community photo shoot for council grant recipients. 

It identified multiple instances of Ms Ruffell allegedly criticising council staff in public settings, including telling one employee an asset could be fixed "if it wasn't for your big fat salary" while at a meeting with state government representatives unrelated to that asset. 

Ms Ruffell was also found to have discussed council business and employee matters with community members, including describing employees as "lazy" and saying "they don't do anything". 

This was in addition to multiple instances where the investigation described Ms Ruffell as "dismissive" in meetings and would "roll her eyes" while staff spoke. 

Investigators also reviewed "rude, undermining and disrespectful" emails sent by Ms Ruffell to employees. 

The investigation stated Ms Ruffell was first made aware of the allegations in February, before she responded a month later. 

The matter was referred to the local government Behavioural Standards Board, which recommended the council contract independent lawyers to conduct the investigation.

Mayor denies findings

The investigation will be tabled to a council meeting on Monday night, where Ms Ruffell will be absent from discussion due to conflict of interest protocols. 

There, elected members will vote on whether to censure Ms Ruffell.

The investigation noted the mayor disputed the findings in full and stated she submitted "the report does not adequately identify the evidence relied on" and "that adverse witness material was not provided to her in full".

Ms Ruffell told the ABC she would wait until Monday's meeting to comment further, but she "strongly" disputed the investigation's findings and had concerns about its process.

"I am also disappointed that the publicly available meeting papers contain only the investigator's summary, rather than the full report," she said.

"I believe the community deserves a fuller understanding of the material being relied upon."

The investigation noted a failure to come to a private resolution over the complaints necessitated them being discussed at a public council meeting. 

Ms Ruffell said she had sought informal resolution and mediation "from the outset" and the decision to pursue a formal investigation "was not mine".