Ikea and Corporate Social Responsibility

Introduction

Child labour and human rights issues in the workplace have gained ground over the past decades in large multinational companies and industries, helping to ensure children’s rights are protected. For example, Swedish furniture giant IKEA has taken significant steps to insure its corporate social responsibility measures are at the forefront of its business operations. However, this was not always the case. A company as diversified as IKEA with a large product offering has had several challenges to overcome, specifically concerning child labour with respect to Indian made rugs and formaldehyde used in its building products. Apple is another multinational that has received negative media attention and allegations of child labour in its product producing facilities at FoxConn in China. The international codes of conduct for multinationals outlined by the International Labour Organization give a clear measure of the standards for child labour and human rights in the work place. Both IKEA and Apple have had child labour issues in their supplier and production facilities at different points in their history. The breach of the international labour codes are examined from a standpoint of both companies as well as the evolution of their corporate social responsibility values and what that means for the future.

IKEA Child Labour and Human Rights Issues

In 1995 IKEA was faced with child labour violations targeting one of its major suppliers, Rangan Exports specifically addressing its manufacturing practices of Indian rugs. The media and special documentary groups were putting a lot of pressure for IKEA to take action on its rug supplier in India. Some of the issues IKEA was facing regarding child labour within the Indian rug industry included bonded labour, meaning: “in order to pay off debts incurred by [the children’s] parents, children would work for years often passing on the debt to their own children.” Children are easy to take advantage of because of their lack of knowledge and experience in life. For example, the socio-economic levels in India often leaves families no choice but to send their children to work in order to earn extra money for daily necessities such as food. It is only in the past few decades that companies such as IKEA have been scrutinized for their lack of leadership in child labour and human rights issues. Due to public pressure and increasingly accessible information through the internet, it is now considered unexceptable to operate a business while in violation of child labour or any other international code of conduct in the workplace in the court of public opinion. Please refer to Appendix 1 for IKEA’s mission statement.

IKEA versus Apple

IKEA

Both IKEA and Apple have been under scrutiny in the past for child labour violations. However, it is the