The struggle of Ryanair employees for workplace co-determination at its subsidiary Malta Air is entering a new phase. Following an interim decision by the Cologne Labor Court this Wednesday, which ruled that the company is not yet obliged to provide necessary documents for the preparation of works council elections at its Cologne base, the United Services Union ver.di is now focusing on the main hearing scheduled for September.
“Employee co-determination is a basic right when workers choose to exercise it,” said Dennis Dacke, Head of Civil Aviation and Maritime Industries at ver.di. “It is outrageous that Ryanair continues to use procedural tricks at multiple locations to obstruct the election of works councils.” Dacke pointed to Malta Air’s Berlin base, where employees were only able to successfully hold works council elections in May of this year – following years of conflict. “It’s time for Cologne to follow suit,” he added.
In Cologne, workers at Malta Air have been fighting for two and a half years for their right to establish a works council. The company has refused to provide the employee lists necessary for the election committee, nominated by the workforce, to determine voter eligibility. Additionally, the employer threatened to file damages claims against all members of the election committee who supported the injunction request in court, a move clearly intended to intimidate and divide the group. “This behavior goes far beyond any acceptable form of dispute. It is absolutely unacceptable,” Dacke stated.
Beyond the employer’s refusal to cooperate, the challenges Ryanair employees face in organizing representation are also due to inconsistent interpretations of the German Works Constitution Act. Modern corporate structures – particularly in companies headquartered abroad – often involve mobile work and digital management, complicating the traditional definition of a single workplace. “We need a modern application of current labor law,” Dacke emphasized. “It may not always be straightforward, but one thing is certain: new forms of work must not mean the end of co-determination.”
