IKEA Australia’s employees have voted overwhelmingly in support of a new collective agreement, which offers its employees some of the best workplace benefits in Australia.

Key features of the new IKEA collective agreement include offering co-workers 26 weeks maternity leave at full pay and the abolishment of junior pay rates.

IKEA maternity leave benefits far exceed the Federal Government’s recent offer of 18 weeks at the minimum wage, and include a range of market leading features, including:

• 26 weeks paid maternity leave for co-workers with two or more years employment at IKEA
• An option to take 12 months at half pay
• Four weeks paid paternity leave for co-workers with two or more years employment at IKEA
• Maternity and paternity leave available for both birth and adoption of a child
• Maternity and paternity leave available for same-sex couples

In addition, IKEA is revamping its salary structure by eliminating junior rates of pay. This means that all employees will be paid at the adult (21+) rate of pay, ensuring one rate of pay for each position in the agreement, regardless of age or time with IKEA.

IKEA Australia’s Country Manager, David Hood, said that the new agreement aims to create a better everyday life for co-workers.

“As a business, IKEA’s core aim is to create a better quality of life for ‘the many people’, So what better way to start than with our own co-workers.”

IKEA Australia East currently employs approximately 1200 people, around half of whom are female, and plans to grow its employee base to 3000 by 2015.

“Despite the prospect of rising unemployment rates, it still remains a challenge to attract and retain a diverse group of co-workers. By offering some of the best employee benefits in Australia, we are demonstrating our commitment to co-workers, and aim to be ranked amongst the best employers of choice in the retail sector.

“Our core customers are families with young children, and we want our co-worker team to reflect this. Supporting family life at home for co-workers is one of the best ways we can achieve this aim.

Customers around the world have embraced the IKEA concept since its inception over 50 years ago. IKEA is the world’s largest home furnishings retailer with 285 stores in 36 countries/territories, employing more than 135,000 co-workers. In 2008, a total of 565 million people visited IKEA stores globally, and almost 200 million copies of the annual IKEA catalogue were distributed in 52 editions and 27 languages. Last year, the turnover for all IKEA stores was 21.2 billion euros (approx A$37.86 billion).

For further information on IKEA, visit www.IKEA.com.au.

For further media information, please contact Sarah Entwistle:
Tel. (02) 9332 2055 or 0401 693 381, Email. sarah@entwistle.com.au