IKEA UK releases Gender Pay Gap Report

IKEA UK today releases its gender pay gap report, revealing a mean gap of 6.9% for its retail operations. While this gap is less than the UK average and that of the retail sector, IKEA UK acknowledges that there is still more work to be done to close the gap entirely.

The retailer also reveals a reversed mean gender pay gap of -10.6% in the distribution operation of its UK business and mean bonus gender pay gaps across both Retail and Distribution of 9.7% and reversed (-) 20.5% respectively.  

With a 50/50 gender split across the UK organisation, IKEA has identified that the current pay gap within its Retail operations is due to the uneven distribution of men and women at store management and country management level. 

As for the reversed gender pay gap evident in the distribution operation, this is due to more women working in managerial roles which are higher paid.

Carin Hammer Blakebrough, IKEA Country HR Manager UK & IE, commented, “We welcome the gender pay gap regulation as it leads to greater transparency and encourages action from businesses across the UK to reduce the gap. While we recognise that our results are smaller than the UK average for Retail and reversed for Distribution, this exercise has helped us to identify where we should focus our efforts. We want to eliminate the gender pay gap and continue to nurture an environment where each co-worker has an opportunity to strive.”

IKEA UK already offers a number of equal benefits and initiatives both in its retail and distribution operations to foster a more diverse, equal and inclusive workforce. 

These include:

• Support networks and mentoring for female co-workers and future female leaders
• Equal development opportunities, flexible working and enhanced maternity leave
• Inclusion and unconscious bias e-learning and training
• Implementing the real Living Wage and one weekend off in every four

Carin continued, “We have a global 50/50 gender split target and we’re proud to have already achieved this across our entire UK organisation. Since the data for our report was collected, we’ve hired more women to our country management team bringing the total to seven women and five men. Diversity and inclusion is embedded into IKEA’s vision and values. We know a more diverse workforce leads to better innovation and creativity, which is why it is integrated into all our business plans and seen as a big driver of performance and growth.”

On a global level, IKEA Group has co-chaired the UN Sec­retary-General High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment and is also proud to support the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) to promote gender equality and fairness. 

“We are going all in for gender equality and our commitment to close the gender pay gap is just one part of the holistic approach taken across the IKEA Group to strive for excellent conditions for all co-workers, no matter their identity or background. We always listen to feedback from co-workers and will constantly seek new ways to achieve and maintain gender equality,” concluded Carin.

Source : IKEA

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