This paper presents the findings of a study on the working conditions in IKEA’s suppliers in Bangladesh and Vietnam. It assesses the working conditions in the factories by comparing them with the standards as prescribed in IKEA’s code of conduct for supplier companies. The study covers seven factories – four in Bangladesh and three in Vietnam. In the case of Vietnam, results are presented in comparison with the findings of an earlier study conducted in 2002. The study relies mainly on the data collected from interviews with workers.
The results clearly show that a share of IKEA’s products are still supplied by companies which violate basic human and worker rights, outlined in IKEA’s code of conduct – the IKEA Way on Purchasing Home Furnishing Products (IWAY). The results, however, differ greatly between countries.
The following are some other main findings
- in Vietnam the violations of the code of conduct are relatively few and, all factories have shown improvements in part of the working conditions compared to those in 2002.
- the situation in Bangladesh is disturbing as all factories violate IKEA’s code of conduct on a large scale
- violations regarding maximum work hours are found in all the factories, though the situation is slightly better in Vietnam
- workers are not aware of their rights as expressed in IKEA’s code of conduct. However, some factories provide the workers with booklets containing a summary of the national labour law
- all seven factories investigated pay at least the minimum wage. However, in all four factories in Bangladesh monthly and overtime wage are always paid a few weeks late.
- on the positive side there is no evidence of forced, compulsory or bonded labour or any major discrimination on the basis of caste or religion