A French court has fined Ikea one million euros. The judges considered it proved that the French subsidiary of the Swedish furniture company had illegally collected and stored data on some of its employees.
The judgment said that the espionage act took place over many years and violated the privacy of those affected. Bank accounts have been scrutinized and in some cases dossiers have been prepared, which are not even true in individual cases. The public prosecutor had demanded a fine of two million euros.
The perpetrators included several branch managers and employees of the Human Resources Department, as well as a private detective and police officers. Also Jean’s former boss, Jean-Louis Ballot Ikea-France, found guilty in the case and sentenced to two years in suspended prison. He will also have to pay a fine of 50,000 euros. Prosecutors limited their indictment to misconduct from 2009 to 2012, although there was evidence that espionage had begun as early as the 2000s.
After the verdict, the furniture store pleaded guilty. It will be examined whether further measures than those already initiated are necessary to avoid such incidents in future. “Ikea France strongly condemns the practices, apologizes and has implemented a comprehensive action plan to stop it,” it said in a statement.
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