The story of Columba working at IKEA
Here there is no discrimination and they always give you the opportunity to progress”
Columba is from Venezuela, and works in the Sales department.
Columba is from Venezuela, and works in the Sales department. Every day, thousands of people are forced to abandon their home countries for fear of persecution on account of their race, nationality or political ideas, or because they belong to a particular social group. At IKEA, we want to help these people find their refuge and their future in Spain, through our Employability Programme. Columba is one of the participants at IKEA Coruña, and tells us her story.
Columba has been in Spain for a year and a half. Fear and insecurity in her own country, Venezuela, led her to seek asylum from the Spanish government. Once here, things were not easy for her, and fearing that she would end up sleeping on the street, she sought help from Accem, an NGO that works to improve the quality of life of refugees and migrants.
“Accem has been my refuge, it’s like a family to me. They always care about my problems and my situation, and they opened the door for me to work at IKEA”, she explains.
The NGO suggested to Columba the possibility of participating in our Employability Programme, a training project at IKEA stores, which aims to encourage cultural and workplace integration of refugees who have arrived in our country.
“It was a challenge for me to work at IKEA, learning new things every day - and even new words. However, it was a wonderful experience, thanks to the warm welcome and the friendliness of my IKEA colleagues, especially Marisa”, says Columba, who was also impressed by how much the company’s employees are valued: “Here there is no discrimination, and they give you the opportunity to progress. Also, they are all concerned about the planet and recycling.”
Puchi, as Columba is known to her colleagues, acknowledges that when she arrived in Spain she felt insecure in herself, as someone in a strange country with strange people, but the experience at IKEA has helped her to lose that fear and to develop new social and workplace skills that have helped her to grow.
Our colleagues at IKEA A Coruña, Ana Belén and Marisa, have been working with Puchi during her training, and have told us their impressions of the Employability Programme:
“When Columba told me her story, I realised the importance of second chances. Being involved with this has made me feel special; it’s a lovely project from which we all gain something”, commented Marisa.
“I am grateful for the opportunity which IKEA has given me to be part of this project, and for the trust they have placed in me. It has been a very rewarding experience for me, and very human; it’s been a wonderful project and I am delighted to have been able to take part in it”, says Ana Belén.
A look towards the future after the programme ends.
Now, we have to talk about tomorrow, and Puchi is very clear: her dream is to go on working so that she can have the means to help her parents and her sisters, who are still in Venezuela.
“It seems odd to my parents, but I want a settled future in Spain, making my contribution with my strength, my work and my own efforts. Perhaps then one day, I’ll be able to bring my family here. I have so much to thank Accem, IKEA and this country for. Today I can say that I am happy, and it’s because I can be here, because I’ve met so many good people and I can go on growing”, she says, excitedly.
Puchi is closer to achieving her goals. Today, she is still working with us.
If you would like more information on our Employability Programme, we recommend you read this article.