The Editor, I have never written a letter to the Editor before, but feel compelled to do so, after chatting with some Ikea employees who have been locked out/on strike since May.
We are fast approaching our Family Day in Richmond. Sadly, we have a broken family here in Richmond, and it has been broken for almost eight months.
Ikea was once thought of as a family store. The city has always felt a sense of pride that Ikea was in our community and that people came from all over the Lower Mainland to shop at this store. It was built for families and it welcomed families. The employees were also considered part of the Ikea family. But all that changed in May 2013.
Employees were told that their full-time hours were going to be reduced and their hourly rate would be decreased.
Ikea in Sweden (where Ikea began) supports the Richmond Ikea employees who have been locked out for the past seven months.
After almost eight months, the locked out employees have had to find work elsewhere to take care of their families.
The store continues to sell product, albeit at a reduced capacity: no restaurant; no babysitting; no returns ... but how is new stock delivered to the store, because no unionized trucker should be crossing that picket line? Shame on you Richmond Ikea; this is not how you should treat your family.
Marie Murtagh
A former Ikea shopper Marie Murtagh
