Sysmä appoints former manager to temporary role after court ruling

Sysmä’s municipal council has chosen Lasse Peltonen to carry out the municipal manager’s duties temporarily, Yle reports. He will remain in the role until the municipality appoints a permanent manager.

Peltonen’s previous appointment ended at the close of September after the Supreme Administrative Court refused leave to appeal a ruling that overturned his 2024 selection. The Administrative Court had found that runner-up Päivi Vauhkonen was somewhat more qualified and said it could not rule out the possibility that the selection had breached the Equality Act because of her gender.

The municipality had been without a manager for almost a month. Administrative Director Tuula Mäkinen had handled only essential matters while Sysmä began a new recruitment process.

The council had tried to appoint an interim manager on October 19, but could not hold the required secret ballot because one councillor was participating remotely. The matter was postponed. The municipal executive board later reconsidered it after an ineligible person had taken part in its earlier decision, and proposed Peltonen for the temporary role.

Jukka Elomaa of the National Coalition Party argued in both the executive board and the council that the matter should not be considered, saying the board could not revisit an issue that the council had previously postponed. His proposal did not receive enough support.

Sysmä is also awaiting a ruling on its appeal concerning the 2023 dismissal of former municipal manager Marketta Kitkiöjoki. The Administrative Court overturned that dismissal, and the municipality has sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court.

A separate initiative by the National Coalition Party council group calls for a temporary committee to consider removing the executive board’s chairpersons before the end of their term. The group cited a lack of confidence, including that Peltonen’s work equipment was not taken away immediately when his employment ended. The initiative has been sent to the administrative director for preparation.