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Ikea finally cracked and apologizes for using political prisoners as labourers during communist times

Sunday, 18 November 2012
Ikea has finally cracked and accepted that it used political prisoners during communist times in East Germany to manufacture it furniture. This is something that Ikea had categorically rejected last year when the new first came out.

On Friday the company wrote in a press release that it deplores the use of political prisoners in the manufacture of furniture in the former GDR some 25 - 30 years ago.

"During the past year, media reported that 25-30 years ago IKEA purchased products from trade companies in the former GDR that possibly utilised prison labour, including political prisoners. The IKEA Group took the allegations very seriously and initiated an investigation."
Ikea added that it engaged Ernst & Young’s in May 2012 to carry out an independent investigation into the purchase practices in former GDR and Cuba."

Ikea said that the investigation has now been completed and since May, approximately 20,000 pages of documents from the internal archives of the IKEA Group and 80,000 archived objects at German federal and state archives have been analysed.

Around 90 individuals, both active and retired IKEA Group co-workers as well as witnesses from the former GDR have been interviewed. In addition, a public hotline was established and questionnaires to both active and former co-workers were distributed.

The investigation indicates that political and criminal prisoners were involved in parts of the component or furniture production units that supplied to IKEA 25-30 years ago. The investigation also shows that there were IKEA Group representatives who at the time were aware of the possible use of political prisoners in the former GDR production. Even though the IKEA Group took steps to secure that prisoners were not used in production, it is now clear that these measures were not effective enough.

As a plaster on the wound, the Ikea Group, in consultation with the German organization UOKG, decided to provide a financial contribution to the organization of scientific research on forced labour in the former GDR.

This report has investigated claims that the company abused prisoners, including political, prisoners. These political and criminal prisoners participated in the share of manufacturing in companies, which supplied Ikea some 25-30 years ago.
By Scancomark.com
Link to the press release from Ikea

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