Union leader praises IKEA for cutting prices on 1,000 products

IKEA has cut the prices of more than 1,000 products, in some cases by 30%, prompting praise from Vilhjálmur Birgisson, chairman of Iceland’s Federation of General and Special Workers, mbl.is reports.

“IKEA deserves praise. This is how we should do it. Everyone must now contribute if we are to bring down inflation and interest rates and protect the basis of our collective agreements,” Vilhjálmur wrote on Facebook.

He said IKEA had shown that it was possible to go on the offensive and reduce prices. Workers had contributed through moderate wage agreements, he said, and others must do the same.

“If we are genuinely going to bring down inflation and interest rates, no one can avoid responsibility,” Vilhjálmur said.

He renewed his call for the government, the state, municipalities, the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise, the retail and service sectors, and everyone involved in setting prices in Iceland to commit to restraining price increases and not raising prices or tariffs by more than 2.5% for the remainder of the agreement period.