The British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) has claimed victory against Ryanair in the Court of Appeal, which it says “delivers justice” for the airline’s pilots while setting a “powerful precedent for the entire trade union movement”.
A court ruling found that Ryanair’s practice of putting pilots who exercised their legal right to strike in 2019 on a blacklist, in order to withdraw their travel benefits, constituted a breach of the Blacklisting Regulations.
The decision highlights that retaliatory actions against workers who take part in lawful industrial action are both unacceptable and unlawful, according to a Balpa spokesperson.
The legal case arose after Balpa called a strike among Ryanair pilots in 2019.
In response, Ryanair threatened to revoke concessionary travel benefits for employees who participated in the action.
The airline then removed these benefits for 12 months.
Affected pilots, represented by law firm Farrer & Co, successfully argued that Ryanair’s conduct amounted to blacklisting under UK regulations designed to protect workers from such “discriminatory practices”.
A Balpa spokesperson said: “This case reinforces the principle that workers’ rights to organise and engage in lawful strikes are sacrosanct and its significance was recognised by the Secretary of State of Business and Trade who intervened in the case.
“Balpa’s victory highlights the critical role trade unions play in defending these rights and ensuring employers are held accountable for any breaches.”
Balpa general secretary Amy Leversidge added: “This is a huge win for Balpa and the trade union movement more generally which could not have been achieved without the bravery of the pilots involved and the wider support of the Balpa membership.
“Thankfully the Court’s decision will put a stop to employers making lists of striking employers in order to punish them and we hope that this judgment will make employers think twice before relying on other harmful strike-busting tactics in the aviation sector and beyond.
“As we have said time and time again, Balpa always prefers to work in partnership with employers to avoid protracted legal battles, but this shows that we will never fail to stand with our members to protect their rights in situations such as this.”
Alice Yandle, a partner at Farrer & Co, hailed the “emphatic” ruling, which she said “raises points of such a fundamental importance in industrial relations law”.
A Ryanair spokesperson confirmed the carrier would be appealing the verdict.
“Ryanair has instructed our lawyers to immediately appeal this ruling,” they said. “Ryanair, not unreasonably, removed discretionary staff travel benefits for 12 months from a small number of pilots who failed to report for their rostered duties in 2019.
“Staff travel benefits are discretionary and no employer can or should be forced to provide them to people who fail to show up for work.”