Lisa Ruffell, who has led the council on the Limestone Coast, about 350 kilometres south-east of Adelaide, since 2023, was investigated over allegations that she undermined the professional reputation of council employees, contributed to distress, created governance instability and contributed to psychosocial risks for staff.
The Kelledy Jones Lawyers investigation, published in summary form on Wednesday as part of papers for a special council meeting, found multiple instances of Ms Ruffell criticising council staff in public settings. At a community photo shoot for council grant recipients, she told one staff member they "needs to go back to netball and lose some weight". At a meeting with state government representatives unrelated to a particular asset, she told an employee the asset could be fixed "if it wasn't for your big fat salary".
The investigation also found Ms Ruffell discussed council business and employee matters with community members, including describing employees as "lazy" and saying "they don't do anything". Investigators described Ms Ruffell as "dismissive" in meetings, saying she would "roll her eyes" while staff spoke, and reviewed emails they described as "rude, undermining and disrespectful".
Ms Ruffell was first made aware of the allegations in February and responded a month later, the investigation stated. The matter was referred to the local government Behavioural Standards Board, which recommended the council contract independent lawyers to conduct the investigation.
Ms Ruffell disputes the findings in full. She submitted the report "does not adequately identify the evidence relied on" and that "adverse witness material was not provided to her in full".
She told the ABC she would wait until Monday's meeting to comment further, but "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."
Ms Ruffell said she had sought informal resolution and mediation "from the outset" and that the decision to pursue a formal investigation "was not mine". The investigation noted a failure to come to a private resolution over the complaints necessitated them being discussed at a public council meeting.
The investigation will be tabled at Monday night's council meeting, where Ms Ruffell will be absent from discussion due to conflict of interest protocols. Elected members will vote on whether to censure her.