IKEA workers’ rights are not for sale
The UNI IKEA Global Union Alliance announced today it is stepping up its activities in key countries to make IKEA understand: workers rights are not for sale. Today the Alliance is kicking off a series of actions which may target IKEA customers, stakeholders and the public to urge IKEA to clean up its act on worker violations in its global network, including allegations of union busting in Turkey.
The Alliance with its network of 40 unions and IKEA workers from 16 countries is today informing IKEA co-workers about the company’s failure to live its values away from home and the inconsistencies in its approach to worker rights and labour relations, There is a clear division between IKEA’s Nordic operations and neighbouring countries where workers’ rights are largely respected and where the company and unions entertain a constructive dialogue and further afield where they are ignored or abused:
· Turkey – illegal dismissals, pressure and bribes, retaliation against union members
· Russia – 60 hour weeks, forced overtime
· Czech Republic – refusal to bargain, creation of fake or yellow union
· Ireland – management openly opposing unionisation
· USA – union access to workers denied, insufficient hours to make a living
· Download leaflet #1 and #2
Head of UNI Commerce, Alke Boessiger said, “The Alliance is stepping up its action because of IKEA’s failure to take responsibility and live up to the values it professes, away from home. We are not talking about isolated incidents. There are cases of unfair dismissals, unilateral reduction of benefits and increased workload, management support for fake unions, and other attacks on labour rights across the company’s global operations. IKEA has no excuses – it can not operate a two tier system. The company should take seriously the reputational risk and change its behaviour globally before its customers say enough is enough and go elsewhere.”
The Alliance is making the following demands on IKEA:
· To be consistent in their approach to labour relations and social dialogue.
· To respect the right of all IKEA workers to join a union.
· To guarantee union access to workers
· To sign a Global Framework Agreement with UNI covering all IKEA stores
Contact
Richard Elliott, UNI Global Union, Mobile: +41 79 794 9709