A Spanish flight attendant has lost his case against the Irish low-cost airline after he was sacked by his employers for eating a baguette meant for passengers.
Back in 2010, Ryanair officially investigated claims of misconduct by one of its flight attendants, Madrid-based Juan Francisco Montes Montesinos, after he reportedly ate a ham, cheese and tomato baguette, valued at €5.50 ($7.50), which was on the passenger menu.
Company regulations require staff to first inform and then pay for any food meant for passengers before actually eating it, Spanish daily 20 minutos reported on Tuesday.
Montes did neither, prompting his dismissal early in the following year.
The disgruntled flight attendant decided to take the matter to court, first to Madrid’s labour court, and then to the city’s court of law.
Both courts were unable to deal with proceedings given that Montes was hired through a job agency based in Ireland and was part of the company’s branch in Oslo, Norway.
The plaintiff claimed he’d decided to file the complaint through the Spanish legal system because Ryanair has offices at Madrid’s Barajas airport but both judges dismissed his appeal on the basis that the low-cost airline operates according to Irish law.
Ryanair said in 2013 this case could only be resolved "in the European courts upholding EU regulations on the employment of mobile transport workers".
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Alex Dunham (alex.dunham@thelocal.com)