Ryanair management back in court

[Hansol]

Neck putting on block time !!! For a number of years now the poor treatment of FR pilots have been highlighted in this forum, and on most occasions it is presented as if the percieved injustice occurs against the entire pilot workforce, this simply is not the case. The vast majority of FR pilots are happy with their lot, the company simply could not prosper and grow if they were not. A small number are activists with their own agenda hell bent on stiring the pot. I know outside of work a number of FR Captains and first officers and most feel that FR are no better or worse then any other airline. So lets put a bit more balance into things and realise that the unions are driving most of this for their own ends.

[Aloue]

Hansol of course you are (intentionally?) putting your head on the block - since both contentions in your sentence -

The vast majority of FR pilots are happy with their lot..

and

... the company simply could not prosper and grow if they were not.

are nonsense. You may have missed the sea change in pilot opinion or the 95%+ vote to reject Ryanair's recent "generous" 5-4 pay offer. Or even the explosion in membership of their dedicated website. Just three clues as to the reality.

[Hansol]

Aloue - the explosion in membership of a secret website, come on that proves nothing. The REPA site can be manipulated to suit its owners ends.

FR are the champions of propoganda but pilots should be aware that the unions are very good at that game as well, and they have a lot to gain from getting into FR.

[EI-CFC]

that's why I have emphasised that RYANAIR is a very bad and a very sad copy of SWA

Sad, maybe in some aspects. Bad though? Nope. In fact in business terms they've re-defined SouthWests business model to such an extent that new entrants often copy FR than WN..now whether that is a good thing, is another matter.

[the grim repa]

Hi Hansol - I Think you are a very fine poster but i do not agree with your point of view.You have some alternative viewpoints.Anyhow that is your right.The right that ryanair management would have denied their employees on their private website www.repaweb.org.Had their own witnesses and experts not blown up so badly in their faces this week in dublins high court.

We have to ask the question,Why does ryanair management wish to deny pilots the right to private communication and the FREEDOM OF SPEECH?

Will pprune be the next website to dalliance with ryanair management in the courts.

[cameldung]

I am a member of REPA and it has been made clear there that membership numbers there are overstated for various reasons (by a number I cannot recall, but it is around 40-50). That still indicates a membership of over 600. It also suggests that Ryanair-style manipulation of the facts is not normal on REPA, as you seem to suggest might be the case.

Hansol does this not actually imply that REPA is likely to be a more “reliable” source than Ryanair - for instance of pilot salary figures, of actual pilot treatment, of how agreements are really interpreted, how those paying for their type-rating are treated in practice (which is rapidly becoming the new "rip-off"), etc, etc. I think I know which one FR pilots trust and I think you might also know that too! Why would an employer go to so much trouble to infiltrate a website which it says it does not care about? Is it really because they are so concerned about their employees that they need a system of spies and anonymous sources?

[delwy]

The REPA site can be manipulated to suit its owners ends.

Hansol that's an interesting observation/suggestion. You don't work for Ryanair do you? I don't think most people would make that assumption or take such a line. You don't for example say it about pprune. In fact, was it not Ryanair that manipulated certain numbers in Stansted to out-manoeuvre BALPA a few years ago? Unlike your suggestion about REPA, in Ryanair's case the figures (proof) were there to be inspected after the event. So, as I say, you don't work for Ryanair do you?

[Danny]

Ryanair judgment reserved

Irish Times

June 2nd 2006

Ryanair judgment reserved

The High Court has reserved judgment on a bid by Ryanair to obtain the names of individuals who posted material, including alleged threats, on a website set up to allow the airline's pilots communicate with each other.

Ryanair is seeking orders requiring the identification of persons engaged in communications on a website operated by Ryanair European Pilots Association (Repa). The company claimed the messages included a threat to "slash tyres" and showed evidence of wrongful activity against the company and its employees.

The action was taken against Neil Johnston, an official with the trade union Impact, the Irish Airline Pilots Association and its British counterpart, Balpa.

The company has claimed that pilots considering re-locating to Dublin to operate the new 737 800 aircraft were intimidated and threatened.

It contends the defendants have a duty to name the persons identified by the codename "ihateryanair", "cantfy-wontfly" and others on the Repa site and claims the website was established by and is controlled by Ialpa and Balpa. The defendants have denied the claims and contend Ryanair has not come to the court with clean hands and had itself engaged in intimidatory behaviour.

In closing submissions yesterday, Brian O'Moore SC, for Ialpa, said Ryanair had gone beyond the bounds of a reasonable reaction when it moved to investigate claims that pilots were being intimidated and bullied.

In reserving judgment on the seven-day hearing, Mr Justice Thomas Smyth said he would try to have a decision before the end of July.