From
RTE news :
Ryanair loses bid on Labour Court inquiry
14 October 2005 12:35
Ryanair has lost its High Court bid to prevent the Labour Court investigating complaints by pilots over conditions at the airline.
Ryanair, which refuses to recognise unions, had challenged the Labour Court's entitlements to hear pilots' complaints represented by their union, Irish Air Line Pilots Association, under new industrial relations legislation.
Ryanair had argued that the industrial relations law effectively introduces compulsory union recognition by the back door and should not apply to a high-pay multinational like Ryanair.
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It also argued that the Labour Court had no jurisdiction to hear the case because the company has already got adequate internal bargaining and dispute resolution procedures.
It also alleged that the Labour Court had acted incorrectly and unfairly in deciding that it had jurisdiction to hear the case.
However, Mr Justice Michael Hanna found against Ryanair on every point.
His ruling clears the way for the Labour Court to carry out a substantive investigation of the pilots' complaints.
He refused to grant a stay on when that hearing should take place.
However, he awarded costs against Ryanair but allowed a stay of three weeks on the costs order.
It is understood that Ryanair's legal team will be considering the detailed ruling and has not yet made a decision on whether to appeal.