IKEA was fined in France for tracking employees

A French court on Tuesday ordered the Swedish company IKEA to pay a fine of one million euros for spying on its employees in France. The world's largest furniture retailer has been found guilty of unauthorized collection and storage of employee data. For several years, the French branch of IKEA monitored its employees and violated their privacy by checking their bank account records. And sometimes it used fake employees to write workplace reports. Prosecutors demanded an even higher fine, two million euros, from a company owned by the Ingka group. IKEA, meanwhile, has taken steps to curb these practices, saying it is reviewing the court ruling to see if further action is needed. "IKEA Retail France strongly condemned these practices, apologized and implemented a major action plan to prevent their recurrence," the statement said. The case was also found guilty by former director of the French division Jean-Louis Baillot, to whom the court imposed a two-year suspended sentence and a fine of 50,000 euros. The allegations focused on the period 2009-2012, although prosecutors claimed that spying had already begun in 2000. Among the accused are several managers and staff of the human resources department, as well as a private investigator and police officers. In this case, IKEA was also accused of spying on some customers. Following the revelation of these practices in 2012, it fired several managers and revised its internal policy.