After a nine and half hour long debate between representatives of Irish budget airline Ryanair and the unions yesterday at Arbejdsretten – the labour court – there was still no decision from the three judges, and it is believed the decision could be a few weeks coming.
“We will decide as quickly and prudently as possible,” was the message from the judges.
The lack of decision for now means that Ryanair can continue to fly in and out of Copenhagen.
Irish or Danish?
The Flyvebranchens Personale Union (FPU) is arguing that Ryanair is liable to work under Danish rules and laws even though Ryanair is an Irish company.
“This is where they meet for work, this is where the employees take time off and this is where they are when they are on standby,” Peter Nisbeth, a lawyer for the LO union, told Jyllands-Posten.
Ryanair’s lawyer Michael Moller Nielsen maintained that Ryanair flies using Irish permits and Irish aircraft. He argued that very little of the work on a Ryanair flight takes place on Danish soil.
Ryanair’s bases in Billund and Copenhagen have established a system where staff meetings take place on flights.
The wait could be long
This means that a crew spends only 2 percent of their working time on Danish soil while the aircraft is being checked from the outside.
If the union wins its case, it promised it would launch a strike within five days of a decision. Should Ryanair prevail, a strike would be illegal.
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The possibility exists that the judges might refer the case to the EU, which would of course delay any decision.
