The Social Court number 2 of Santiago de Compostela has issued the first ruling that forces Ryanair to reinstate a cabin crew member fired in the 2022 strike, considering that the company violated this constitutional right.

As stated in the ruling, issued on August 10, almost a year after the summer of multiple strikes called by the USO, the judge declared the dismissal of a worker null and void and forced the airline to reinstate her, to pay her wages from his dismissal on August 16, 2022 and to pay him 7,501 euros as compensation for damages.

Ryanair argued in its dismissal letter that the employee had breached the minimum strike services for five days – on July 25, 26 and 27, and August 9 and 10.

However, as the worker claimed and the judge verified, the company informed her of the minimum services that she had to attend to but, once the day arrived, they assigned others “without prior notice.”. The flight attendant refused to accept the changes, citing her right to strike.

In her ruling, the head of the Social Court number 2 of Santiago sees as contrary to this constitutional right “any measure decided by the employer” that tends “to nullify the consequences of the strike”, such as “the substitution full of all the functions that the worker on strike had to develop”.

“What is relevant, therefore, is not whether the measure agreed by the employer is extraordinary or not, nor whether the substitution mechanism has been used on other occasions. What is significant is that the employer’s decision has the effect of reducing or annulling the workers’ dispute measure,” the magistrate argues.

In this specific case, the judge considers that the fact that Ryanair modifies the assigned service on the same day on several occasions prevents the worker “from being certain that the new assignment (whatever it may be) falls within the services actually established as minimum services”.

“No legitimation is justified to make said changes without prior notice. The defendant company fails to comply with the regulations regarding strikes, modifying the services assigned to the worker as minimum services without offering any justification in this regard.

Introducing in all communications, as well as in those prior to the start of the strike, coercive messages to workers regarding the exercise of the right to strike, introducing in each and every one of them the shadow of dismissal, in case of non-compliance, or adoption of disciplinary measures.

The conduct of the company supposes a transgression of the constitutional right to strike, for which reason it is appropriate to declare the nullity of the dismissal for violating it, “says the magistrate.

The company fails to comply with the regulations regarding strikes, modifying the services assigned to the worker as minimum services without offering any justification

After learning of this ruling, the USO union – calling the strike – and the Ryanair Crew Association (ATR) have issued a statement in which they claim this first ruling of the more than 45 demands for dismissal filed within the framework of this strike .

It is “the first to be condemnatory and agree with the workers”, they emphasize, while criticizing that politicians “of all colors receive Ryanair and its business model based on the abuse of workers and passengers with a red carpet”. .