I was in Pier One a few weeks ago - first time in awhile - and was shocked at how much stuff they were selling that was complete garbage. I know it was never high end but this store was something else (a relatively new store as well). Stuffed to the ceiling with anything and everything, incl. items you would see at the dollar store. Who is leading this company?

I've seen this story a few times today, clearly a press release from a Union trying to organize the IKEA factory. I don't know enough of the situation to know what's going on, but it is a classic organizing tactic for unions to paint the company in as bad a light as possible, issue press releases with broad language, lies, and mischaraterizations, because in our overnewsed society man many blogs and papers will just print the press release as though it were a researched story.

Somewhere in the article was a comment about how the US was the new Mexico -- and what I assume they were alluding to was the fact that in order to bring manufacturing here, companies are enticed by our lower minimum wages ($8/hour vs $19/hour in Sweden). The article also points out that IKEA does not produce all of its products in Sweden, but in Poland and elsewhere, also, for less than that $19/hour labor cost. In this global economy, we are between a rock and a hard place: we need the jobs here in the US and we need affordable goods -- however, if we overplay our hands supporting higher wages and benefits (the latter via employers) we undercut our ability to keep manufacturing jobs here. One solution is to separate the provision of benefits, like healthcare and retirement, from employment/employers to keep their costs down. It works in Sweden!

Employee abuses at the factory where they churn out $69 bookcases for a Big-Box store?

No, Really???

Would you rather support Wal-Mart?

Now I understand Ikea's lower quality as of late: Cheap U.S. labor.....
I'm all for Made in the USA...but the only Made in the USA furniture i'd put my confidence in is the craftsmanship of the furniture shops in NC, PA and Wisconsin, where there are true craftsmen doing the work and not a bunch of disgruntled minimum wage workers, likely without an ounce of pride in their product.

Exactly, @bepsf.

@GREEPER, I can't imagine why you would doubt that IKEA has less-than-ideal labour standards, given the prices it sells at. And I'm not sure what your problem with unionising is, other than that I know anything approaching socialism has been portrayed as the work of the devil in the US for many decades. If a company (or nation) doesn't want its workers to organise, that must be because it knows it's not treating them right. A fair-dealing company would have nothing to fear from its employees getting together.

@citipearl, having looked at the labels on many IKEA products, I don't know if I've ever seen 'Made in Sweden'. It's a Swedish-owned company but nobody should imagine that means they make their stuff in Sweden. There's a great deal of 'Made in China' - where the only legal unions are the state-run unions, which share your concern for competitiveness in the global market but don't care about workers' wellbeing.

I did also once hear (from a well-informed Norwegian) that the founder of IKEA was a Nazi sympathiser - not sure if that's true, though.

Frankly, IKEA (and similar companies) exploits everyone - the planet, the producers of the raw materials, the manufacturing workers, and the end consumers - because a lot of their stuff is very poor quality. I don't go there any more. You can buy secondhand furniture of much higher quality for the same price as their new junk.

AT-If you are going to blog about (semi-) political issues then have some journalistic integrity and provide links to source articles please.

Sorry about that. I see them now. No more posts on AT until I've had my morning coffee.

I really appreciate AT posting this story. It takes guts to expose a company whose products you've promoted. Ikea also fought against laws that would protect forests from illegal logging. We won't touch Ikea and we post on our blogs about their greenwashing tactics. I was disgusted by the story of how they treat their workers.

I know of many other cheap furniture stores (mostly local and used) who are family-owned and treat their employees very well.

Alternative? 2 words: flea market.

From their website:
"We do our bit and you do yours to get high quality at low prices. Economically produced flat-pack designs, bought in bulk, keep costs down. So does leaving the planning and assembly to you. This means that together we can create a better everyday life for everyone!"

It's not that they under pay and mistreat their employees that keeps the prices down, It's everyone doing their part. Also their merchandise is 'high-quality' meaning I'm sure it lasts a long time and is very durable.

Their sentence sounds better than:
"We mistreat and abuse our employees and under cut the competition by making our furniture of cardboard to keep prices low."

"Would you rather support Wal-Mart?"

I personally won't step inside any Big Box Store - Whether it has a Swedish Flag, a Smiley-Face or a Red Bullseye on the front...
...I'd rather spend a bit more and help keep my neighborhood businesses in business - You know, those little shops on Main Street that don't get multi-million dollar tax breaks?

@Really?

"having looked at the labels on many IKEA products, I don't know if I've ever seen 'Made in Sweden'. It's a Swedish-owned company but nobody should imagine that means they make their stuff in Sweden. There's a great deal of 'Made in China' "

Depends on where you go to Ikea. As the article mentioned, they opened a factory in the US to lower shipping costs. If you go to Ikea's in northern Europe, you will find things made in Sweden.

Not everything made in Sweden, but you will find things made in Sweden.

I think it's naive to expect that any large retailer DOES NOT engage in less than stellar ethical practices. For instance, I worked at an iconic midwestern furniture/housewares retailer. No female was paid a living wage; not even store managers. All the merchandise comes from Asia, Eastern Europe and Mexico. And attendance at meetings to "inform" us of how evil unions are was mandatory. Don't demonize Wal-Mart alone until you make an effort to discover how EVERY retailer you choose to patronize does business.

"For instance, I worked at an iconic midwestern furniture/housewares retailer."

Crate and Barrel

Yeah, I remember making minimum wage and no benefits at one of those "little shops on Main Street that don't get multi-million dollar tax breaks." The owner spent his money on his 2 homes, his wife's collections, and parties. I also worked at a privately owned textbook reseller and there was a lot of mandatory overtime, low pay, and racism that came down from the owner. He liked to ride his $50,000 motorcycle into work. There are plenty of owners, big box & main street small, that don't minimize employee wages or benefits.

There shouldn't be a "don't" in there. It should be "that minimize employee wages & benefits."

I worked at Dish Network who also enforced mandatory overtime and froze raises (often sneakily).

Completely unsurprised. Its a given that almost any multinational retailer out there is going to attempt to grind down their worforce as much as possible in order to shovel as much profit as possible to executive management and the company's owners. (and in the case of publicly traded corporations, ownership of shares is far more highly concentrated amongst a narrow social class than Wall Street would have you believe - fun thing about being an ex-corporate lawyer - you get to see how it works behind the curtain)

On a morning when a vocal minority of the country is cheering on the dismantling of Medicare and Social Security, the adage that "There is No War But Class War" was never truer.

lulz, IKEA is not a swedish company! Though as a "charitable organization" getting tax breaks I should like to know where any of that money is going (nowhere, I expect).

"Steen said the changes were made to free up more money to pay incentive bonuses to top performers."

Ick.

Anyway, I don't think the article seemed too biased in favor of the workers trying to unionize—after all, IKEA corporate or whatever was willing to throw the local ppl in charge under the bus, too. :p

"Workers complain of eliminated raises, a frenzied pace and mandatory overtime." Uh, welcome to the new American workforce!?!? Or, 10 years in Tech and counting. Not that it is right, of course :p