Unions lash out at Ryanair before company takes flight

Company being asked to comply with Danish law

Just days after Ryanair announced four new routes out of Copenhagen this year, the company is facing trouble from Danish unions who want the company to play by Danish rules.

LO, the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions,submitted a complaint to the labour court that if the Irish company is to operate in Denmark, then it must work according to Danish conditions, reports DR Nyheder.

Ryanair does not see it that way as it is an Irish company with Irish-registered aircraft, thus working under Irish laws.

”It is LO's desire to resolve the matter as quickly as possible and preferably before 26 March 2015 when Ryanair launches its base in Copenhagen,” Peter Nisbeth, LO's lawyer, told DR.

READ MORE: Ryanair reveals four new routes from Copenhagen

Turbulent skies ahead
Ryanair is set to operate its first flights out of Copenhagen on March 26, but if the courts find that Ryanair must abide by Danish laws, LO and its associated unions could make it difficult for the airline to operate by instituting a ”sympathetic blockade”.

For example, the unions that represent workers who handle baggage and deliver fuel to aircraft may choose not to carry out their work for the airline until the issue is resolved.

The Irish company has faced similar problems in France, Norway and Belgium, where it eventually lost its cases and had to abide by those nations' laws.

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