‘This is bigger than Kooyong’: Monique Ryan’s comments to Sally Rugg revealed in court documents

Teal MP Monique Ryan may have breached workplace laws when she allegedly told staffer Sally Rugg there could be no “paper trail” over a deal to sack her.

Sally Rugg (left) was allegedly ‘pushed or jostled’ into resigning from Kooyong MP Monique Ryan’s office. Picture: Ian Currie

Teal MP Monique Ryan could have breached workplace laws when she allegedly told staffer Sally Rugg there could be no “paper trail” over a deal to sack her.

In affidavits filed to the Federal Court, Ms Rugg claims the Kooyong MP offered her six weeks’ pay, a non-disparagement contract and a positive reference in an “off-book” deal to have her leave.

But when Ms Rugg asked for the deal to be made in writing, she alleges Dr Ryan, who was elected on a platform of transparency and integrity, became angry and replied: “You know I can’t put this in writing! I can’t have a paper trail!”.

Adam Foster, an employment and safety partner at Colin Biggers & Paisley, said failing to provide a written notice of termination would usually be considered a breach of the Fair Work Act.

“Unless it’s in writing ... how else do you really know if you’ve been sacked or not,” he said.

“Under the Fair Work Act, you are required to give formal notice that someone’s been terminated.”

Monique Ryan may have breached workplace laws. Picture: Ian Currie

But the lawyer said there were exceptions for when employers wanted to avoid “blow back” from irate workers.

“(If) they were trying to cut a deal for everyone to kind of walk away ... that’s normally the only time that you could get away with terminating someone without giving them any formal written notice,” he said.

Ms Rugg has sued the commonwealth and Dr Ryan after claiming she was dismissed from her chief of staff role because she refused to work unreasonable additional hours.

Among the explosive allegations that emerged in the Federal Court on Friday – and in documents filed by the pair to the court – Ms Rugg also alleged Dr Ryan said she wanted to be prime minister one day.

The MP passed the claim off as a joke.

Ms Rugg said Dr Ryan accused her of not working hard enough when she was already doing more than 70 hours a week, including weekends.

Another revelation was that Ms Rugg took a commercial flight from Canberra to Melbourne despite having tested positive for Covid-19 and for which she was formally reprimanded by Dr Ryan.

Mr Foster said there was little case law relating to unreasonable work hours and the Federal Court litigation could have significant implications for employers if Ms Rugg were to win.

“It will send employers back to the drawing board around how they deal with say, their managers, who aren’t award regulated,” he said.

But he said such litigation generally favoured employers.

Dr Ryan yesterday refused to comment on Ms Rugg’s allegations.

A decision is expected on Tuesday.

Explosive court docs reveal secrets between Ryan and chief of staff

Teal MP Monique Ryan allegedly rolled her eyes and suggested a parliamentary staff member was faking her stress leave before bullying her to resign in an “off the record” agreement.

Explosive allegations emerged in an unfair dismissal legal showdown between Member for Kooyong Dr Ryan and her chief of staff Sally Rugg in the Federal Court on Friday.

Ms Rugg claims she was sacked by Dr Ryan after raising issues about working unreasonable hours and the MP’s office being understaffed after just five months in the role.

She said Dr Ryan accused her of not working hard enough when she was already doing more than 70 hours a week, including weekends.

An affidavit has detailed an intense exchange between federal MP Monique Ryan and her staffer Sally Rugg. Picture: Ian Currie

“You don’t understand, I need to be the best, this is bigger than Kooyong,” Dr Ryan allegedly told Ms Rugg in November.

“I want to be the prime minister one day, and I need to know my staff are prepared to work hard for me.

“If you are not prepared to work as hard as I want, I will need to consider my options.” But last night Dr Ryan said the prime minister remark was simply a joke.

“For those wondering, though, I’m *very* serious about swimming in the Olympics next year,’’ she tweeted.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese refused to be drawn on Ms Ryan’s comments that she wants his job one day.

Speaking in Boronia on Saturday morning for the campaign launch of Labor’s Aston by-election candidate Mary Doyle, Mr Albanese said little about Dr Ryan’s alleged comments aired in her Federal Court case with former chief of staff Sally Rugg.

Mr Albanese quickly dismissed questions about the allegations and his thoughts on Dr Ryan’s alleged treatment of staff.

“My thoughts are that’s a court case,” Mr Albanese said.

Another revelation aired in the full-day hearing – and in documents filed by the pair to the court – was that Ms Rugg flew on a commercial plane back to Melbourne from parliamentary duties in Canberra despite testing positive to Covid. Sources have told the Herald Sun Ms Rugg had a medical condition and was told to “get home” by her doctor, so took the flight in November.

They said the plane was 20 per cent full, there were no travel bans in place and that she was asymptomatic, masked and in an empty aisle.

But Dr Ryan, a pediatric neurologist who is known for being a stickler for mask wearing to stop the transmission of Covid, was not happy when she found out, issuing Ms Rugg with a written warning.

The medical professional said the conduct had not only placed the public and their team at “risk” but was “morally wrong”, adding she feared the reputational risks if it became public.

Ms Rugg also revealed an intense exchange she had with her boss in December, where Dr Ryan, who prides herself as an independent who stands up for transparency, gave her an “off the books” ultimatum. The conversation allegedly escalated when it was raised that Ms Rugg’s performance review had not been completed as she was on sick leave the week before.

“Dr Ryan rolled her eyes and said ‘yeah right, stress leave’ and made air quotes with her hands,” Ms Rugg said. “I said ‘it sounds like you think I was pretending to need leave’.

“Dr Ryan said, in a sarcastic manner, ‘come on, stress leave?’ I said ‘Monique, you’re a GP. I can’t believe you’re accusing me of faking my medical leave’.”

Ms Rugg claims Dr Ryan suggested they ditch a performance improvement plan meeting scheduled for the next day, and that she resign.

She alleged Dr Ryan told her management had given her two options: immediately terminate her employment, or performance manage her out.

“I’m trying to give you a third option that’s mutually beneficial, but it has to be done off the record,” she claims Dr Ryan told her.

Ms Rugg did not return to work after this exchange.

But despite the conflict, the former head of change.org said she wanted to return to her job earning $136,000, plus $30,000 in bonuses per year.

She is seeking an interim injunction in court to stop the Commonwealth from terminating her employment until a trial can be heard.

Nick Harrington, for the Commonwealth, said Dr Ryan should not be ordered by the court to continue working with Ms Rugg pending a trial, which the court heard could be months away.

“It cannot work,” Mr Harrington said. “The temperature between these parties at the moment is quite extraordinary.

“This court would have to act as an arbitrator every time they disagreed on anything.

“If they start disagreeing, and the lawyers’ letters start following, then we will be back in this court.”

He described the relationship between the pair as having “unequivocally broken down” and being on “life support”.

“It is a relationship that has withered on the vine,” he said.

Dr Ryan said it would be “impractical, if not impossible” to have Ms Rugg back in her office. She disagreed with several claims by Ms Rugg that she was “hostile”, that her tone and facial expressions were “cold and angry”, and that she was “furious” after missing a speaking spot.

She also rejected claims there would be reputational damage if Ms Rugg’s employment was terminated, saying the only harm had been caused “by these proceedings and the high level of media attention”.

Ms Rugg has continued to be paid, despite not working since resigning in December.

In a statement following Friday’s hearing, Dr Ryan said she was getting on with the work of representing her constituents in Kooyong.

“I do work hard and my team works hard, because it is an absolute privilege to represent the people of Kooyong, and there is a lot of work to be done,” she said. “Politicians and their parliamentary staff are paid more than most Australians, and I think the public should expect that we work very hard and prioritise engaging with our constituents.”

Justice Debbie Mortimer reserved her decision to Tuesday at 9.30am, ordering the Commonwealth continue to pay Ms Rugg “miscellaneous leave” until then.

Sally Rugg (left) and her lawyer outside court. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ian Currie

Excerpt from Sally Rugg’s affidavit ...

On 9 November 2022, I attended a press conference in which Dr Ryan spoke about endometriosis and menstrual pain. During the conference, I realised that my period had started. After the press conference I walked to Aussie’s café to buy tampons, but they didn’t have any. I started getting cramps and an upset stomach so I went to the bathroom for 5 or 10 minutes. When I returned to the parliamentary suite about 9.15 or 9.20, Dr Ryan was visibly angry at me and did not speak to me about the plan for the day, which is what we would normally do at that time of the morning. Normally, we would also walk together to a meeting that we were both attending. This time, Dr Ryan walked ahead of me, instead of with me, to the 9.30am meeting (which I also attended). Again, I saw this as hostile conduct in the workplace.

Given her repeated hostility to me, I felt uncomfortable to tell Ms Ryan that I had my period and that I needed to go and buy tampons, or ask staff in other offices for them. Instead, I used toilet paper, which is unsanitary and uncomfortable, until question time started at 2pm when I felt that I could leave the office and get tampons.

Rugg was ‘pushed or jostled into resigning’

Ms Rugg is fighting to keep her chief of staff role for the Teal MP, seeking an injunction in the Federal Court on Friday to stop the Commonwealth from terminating her employment.

The court showdown kicked off at 10.15am after Ms Rugg’s lawyers revealed on Thursday that negotiations in mediation had failed to resolve their unfair dismissal dispute.

Ms Rugg, the former head of change.org, claims she was sacked for refusing to work “unreasonable hours”.

Her lawyer, Angel Aleksov, told the court Ms Rugg felt pressured to hand in her resignation letter in December following “hostile conduct” by Dr Ryan when she refused to take on more work than the 70-plus hours, including weekends, she was already doing.

“We say that what occurred was that Ms Rugg was pushed or jostled into resigning,” Mr Aleksov said.

“It’s treated as a dismissal at the employer’s initiative.

“Ms Rugg claims to have been working 70-plus hours most weeks, and on weekends.

“We don’t have any denial from Dr Ryan to that effect.

“We see Ms Rugg exercise the right (to not work unreasonable hours) … and it was the exercise of that right which was the subject of retaliation.”

He said Dr Ryan had not accepted the resignation letter’s immediate effect, telling Ms Rugg she would have to continue working until January 31.

Despite the conflict, he said Ms Rugg wanted to return to her $130,000 per year position.

The court heard Dr Ryan began to lose confidence in Ms Rugg when she questioned the workload and said that the office was short-staffed.

Dr Ryan was also forced to give Ms Rugg a formal warning when she flew on a commercial flight from Canberra to Melbourne, despite testing positive to Covid, in November last year.

In her affidavit filed to the court, Dr Ryan outlined she did not believe Ms Rugg had accepted “the seriousness of what she had done”.

Ms Rugg had claimed she had been advised by a GP it was OK for her to fly home, after she had been working for Dr Ryan at Parliament House.

Justice Debbie Mortimer questioned how two people were expected to return to working together after “serious litigation”.

“The material is pretty stark about a breakdown in the work relationship,” Justice Mortimer said.

“I have found it hard to reconcile Ms Rugg’s desire to go back to work with Dr Ryan.”

Justice Mortimer added: “How are they to be compelled to continue to work together?”

Mr Aleksov said: “It will require attention by both parties on the ground in doing so.”

Justice Mortimer then asked if the parties would then “come running back to me” when it doesn’t work out.

Justice Mortimer said she would hand down her judgment as to whether to grant an injunction at 9.30am on Tuesday.

She ordered the Commonwealth continue to pay Ms Rugg miscellaneous leave until 10am that day, pending her ruling.