Workers at the IKEA stores in Haarlem and Amsterdam begin strike on Friday

Employees at the IKEA stores in Haarlem and Amsterdam will go on strike for 24 hours on Friday. According to the FNV, this is an extension in the push for a new collective bargaining agreement: instead of a strike at one store, there will now be strikes at two locations of the home furniture stores.

The trade union is demanding a wage increase of seven percent. FNV board member Danielle Wiek thinks that this would be sufficient compensation for inflation for the staff members and would also increase their purchasing power. According to the trade union, IKEA’s last offer was 2.4 percent.

IKEA previously reported that salaries have already risen considerably in recent years, making them relatively high for the retail sector at the Swedish company. In addition, cost increases and a decline in turnover offer little room for a significant wage increase, the company stated.

In addition to a higher salary, the workers are also demanding that the work pressure be reduced. This will be the latest in a long line of strikes that have taken place at a IKEA store. Previous strikes took place in Heerlen, Utrecht, Delft, Haarlem, and Groningen.