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Saturday, 6 June, the first strike of IKEA workers, organized by the trade unions Federations Filcams Cgil, Cisl and Fisascat UILTuCS Uil, following the unilateral dismissal of the collective bargaining agreement by the company saw an extraordinary turn out which reached in some cities in Italy 95 per cent.

The 16-hour strike announced last May 29, the first eight to be organised by the individual stores, were, however, coordinated to take place at the same time. This was, beyond any doubts, a strong signal of unity among workers that cannot be underestimated by the company.

This strike was a rehearsal for the national one, which date has not yet been decided but could be announced as early as next week. On 12 June, the three trade union Federations will start what could be a first of a series of meetings with the company. The meeeting, which had already been planned for some time, will be fundemantal to determine whether to continue with the negotiations. The Italian unions, however, will never accept the blackmail imposed by the company with the unilateral termination of the CLA."

IKEA workers on strike distributed leaflets to customers, explaining their reasons to protest.

Cutting extra pay for Sunday work is one of the unpopular measures announced for the "co-workers" (as called by Ikea): part-time workers, which in this company acoount for about 70% of the workforce, may lose up to 1500 euro per year.

Trade unions in Italy are united in protesting against a deal that is unfair for a company that dominates the market. “Workers cannot pay for the crisis, more than they already did “-said a part time -worker - we contributed with our work to the great success of this multinational in Italy, and we do not want to see the collapse of 25 years of negotiations. We will fight to defend our rights. "

UNI Europa Commerce stands in solidarity with IKEA workers in Italy and joins the Italian Unions in asking the company to maintain their tradition of dialogue and respect for collective bargaining negotiations that is part of a long standing company’s culture.