Ryanair loses cross-border contract battle

No-frills airline Ryanair has lost a Belgian court case that may have wider implications for the EU as it battles over rights for cross-border workers.

A court in Charleroi ruled in favour of three Belgian employees who claimed their 2002 dismissal by Ryanair was an infringement of Belgian labour laws. The company claimed the three were hired on Irish contracts and their sacking was legal under Irish law.