Peder S and Marte Kirkerud had a dream of working abroad. They both worked at the bar "Fri Flyt" next to the studies. Coincidentally, they learned that the owner of Fri Flyt, the charismatic Varg Vrterl, planned to open a bar on Mykonos for the holiday season that started in March.

Peder and Marte were very enthusiastic, and together with seven other Norwegians they went to Mykonos in February 2020 to start the bar Alter Ego. Alter Ego was owned by Varg's company Full rulle AS, which also owned Fri Flyt, and he owned 100% of the company and was himself the general manager and chairman of the company. Varg, on the other hand, had plenty to do with his other activities, and therefore did not prioritize traveling to Mykonos himself. Instead, Dina Drama, a former colleague of Varg, was hired as site manager for Alter Ego.

When the gang arrived in Mykonos, they soon found out that a lot of work was needed to set up the bar and to get started. Fortunately, Dina Drama had become acquainted with the Greek brothers Ares and Hermes, and they were also employed by the company. Everyone worked night and day to get the bar ready for opening on March 1, 2020.

The first months go by in one, first work with opening and then a huge progress at the bar. Unlike in Norway, there are no strict rules regarding when it should be closed, and for several days Alter Ego is not cleared and closed until the sun has risen the next morning.

Marte eventually gets in good contact with Greek Hermes, and is told that both he and his brother Ares have been paid far better than their Norwegian colleagues. When Marte tells this to the others in the bar, there is a big surprise. It turns out, after further investigations of the pay slips, that none of the Norwegians at the bar have received overtime pay or weekend and night allowances, only paid per hour they have worked.

The employees decide to confront Dina Drama with this, and will demand an explanation. The meeting degenerates quickly, and there is a heated discussion between the employees and Diana. It ends with Diana calling Varg during the meeting to inform him of the situation that has arisen. Varg is busy at a premiere party and does not have time to talk, but says that they will have overtime in the future. The Norwegians make it clear that they will not work any more if they do not immediately receive full settlement for all the time they have spent, while Dina makes it clear that if they do not sharpen up, they are finished in the business.

The next day, the employees are so tired after several months of hard work that they choose not to show up for work, but rather spend their time contacting the media and the Norwegian Labor Inspection Authority. Alter Ego is run that night only by Dina, Ares and Hermes.

The Norwegians still decide to go to work the following day. They are very surprised when they are greeted with signs stating that the bar is closed. They can hear music, and it is clear that there is activity inside the bar. The same thing is repeated the following evening. Marte then sends an e-mail to Dina and asks what is going on.

Early the next morning, 1 May 2020, all Norwegian employees are notified that they have been laid off due to the corona. In future, the bar will only have limited opening hours and a limited number of guests, and it is thus enough with only three employees at work. Only Dina and the Greek brothers continue to work.

Peder and Marte do not intend to find themselves in this. They have both had law at school, and sit down and wrote a letter to their employer Full Rulle AS where they demand paid 50% overtime supplement for 100 hours, and demand 100% overtime for the hours they worked at night and weekends. For Peder and Marte, the requirement is approx. NOK 50,000 each. It is approx. corresponding amount for the other employees.

In addition, they believe that they were actually fired when they were expelled from the workplace two days in a row. The layoff that has come afterwards is just fabrication.

Full Rulle's lawyer Stle Storforlangende rejects any claim. The overtime hours are not documented, and in any case there is no basis for a claim of the order of magnitude that has been submitted.

Furthermore, the lawyer believes that the Norwegians' behavior provides a basis for dismissal, because they have knowingly and intentionally failed to show up for work as agreed. The employer, on the other hand, did not use that access, but instead laid off those as a result of the corona.

It is further correct that there was operation in the premises the two days where it was "closed" on the door. The reason why it was "closed" was that the bar was reserved for some selected VIP guests, so that the public did not have access.

The parties do not agree, and the Norwegians therefore take legal action against Full Rulle AS where they demand:

Overtime allowance of a total of NOK 50,000 per person

Judgment that there is an unlawful dismissal, possibly redundancy

Compensation for lost earnings in the future of NOK 50,000 per person

Compensation for tort and arson with NOK 50,000 per person

The corona pandemic hits the nightlife hard, and Varg eventually sees no other way out than to demand a riot in Full Roll

Peder and Marte are unsure whether they will receive coverage in the estate, and therefore wonder whether they should also sue Varg on the basis of the Norwegian Companies Act's rules on board liability. They believe that he, as both the general manager and the chairman of the board, should have ensured that they were paid overtime pay in accordance with the rules of the law.

Questions:

1. Assess what would have been the outcome of a legal proceeding of the claim made against Full Rulle AS.
2. Assuming that Peder was fully upheld in his claim against Full Rulle As - how much could he expect to be covered by this when Full Rulle went bankrupt?
3. Is there a basis for filing a claim for damages against Varg?