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world news Diaranson 16 Juni 2021

Ikea fined $1.3 million over spying campaign in France

(AP) — A French court bling customers. A lawyer for the unions, Paris was convicted of ecutives and changed internal
ordered home furnishings Solene Debarre, expressed fraudulently gathering per- policy after French prosecu-
giant Ikea to pay some 1.1 Ikea France was convicted of hope that the verdict would sonal data, fined 10,000 eu- tors opened a criminal probe
million euros ($1.3 mil- receiving personal data ob- “make some companies ros ($12,125) and given an in 2012.
lion) in fines and damages tained through fraudulent tremble.” 18-month suspended sen-
Tuesday over a campaign means in a habitual way, and tence. Trade unions alleged that Ikea
to spy on union represen- ordered to pay 1 million eu- “One million euros isn’t France paid to gain access to
tatives, employees and ros in fines and about 100,000 much for Ikea, but it’s a sym- Baillot, who denied ordering police files that had informa-
some unhappy customers euros ($121,225) in damages. bol,” Debarre said. a spy operation, was convict- tion about targeted individu-
in France. ed of receiving fraudulently als, particularly union activ-
Ingka Group, which owns The company, which said it collected data and complicity ists and customers who were
Two former Ikea France ex- and operates most Ikea stores, cooperated in the investiga- in the scheme. He was fined in disputes with Ikea.
ecutives were convicted and noted in a statement after the tion, had faced a potential fi- 50,000 euros ($60,626) and
fined over the scheme and verdicts that the French retail nancial penalty of up to 3.75 given a two-year suspended In one situation, Ikea France
given suspended prison sen- operation “has strongly con- million euros ($4.5 million). sentence. was accused of using unau-
tences. Among the other 13 demned the practices, apolo- Prosecutor Pamela Tabardel thorized information to try
defendants in the high-pro- gized and implemented a ma- asked the court to hand “an Another former CEO of Ikea to catch an employee who
file trial, some were acquitted jor action plan to prevent this exemplary sentence and a France was acquitted for lack had claimed unemployment
and others given suspended from happening again.” strong message to all compa- of evidence. benefits but drove a Porsche.
sentences. nies.” In another alleged instance
“We will now review the Ikea France’s lawyer, Em- of illegal prying, the subsid-
Adel Amara, a former Ikea court’s decision in detail and The executive who was in manuel Daoud, said the com- iary reportedly investigated
employee who helped expose consider if and where any ad- charge of risk management at pany hadn’t decided whether an employee’s criminal re-
the wrongdoing, called the ditional measures are neces- the time of the spying, Jean- to appeal. He said the case cord to determine how the
ruling “a big step in defense sary,” the group said. François Paris, acknowledged was marked by a lack of hard employee was able to own a
of the citizen....It makes me to French judges that 530,000 evidence, and noted that the BMW on a low income.
glad that there is justice in Trade unions accused Ikea to 630,000 euros a year were fines were well below the The company also faces po-
France.” France of collecting personal earmarked for such inves- maximum possible. tential damages from separate
data by fraudulent means, tigations. Paris — the only civil lawsuits filed by unions
The panel of judges at the notably via illegally obtained official to have admitted to “The court took into account and 74 employees.
Versailles court found that police files, and illicitly dis- the alleged illegal sleuthing the action plan that Ikea put
between 2009 and 2012, closing personal information. — said his department was in place after the revelation of Ikea’s France subsidiary em-
Ikea’s French subsidiary used Lawyers for Ikea France de- responsible for handling the the facts, in 2012. That’s very ploys more than 10,000 peo-
espionage to sift out trou- nied that the company had operation on orders from satisfying,” Daoud said. ple in 34 stores, an e-com-
ble-makers in the employee any strategy of “generalized former Ikea France CEO merce site and a customer
ranks and to profile squab- espionage.” Jean-Louis Baillot. The company fired four ex- support center.

UK fends off demands to give workers more virus support help

(AP) — The British gov- in India, is between 40% to But beginning in July, that will have been offered two effective against hospitaliza-
ernment fended off calls 80% more transmissible than support goes down to 70% vaccine shots, including ev- tion from the delta variant —
Tuesday to provide more the previous dominant strain with firms contributing 10%. eryone over 50, by July 19. In 96% in the case of Pfizer and
financial support to busi- in the U.K. The alpha vari- The scheme becomes less a further development Tues- 92% for the AstraZeneca jab.
nesses and workers suf- ant first found in Britain was generous through the sum- day, the National Health Ser- On Tuesday, the British gov-
fering from its decision to largely behind a winter virus mer before it expires at the vice said the rollout, which ernment reported 7,673 new
delay lifting coronavirus surge that left the country end of September. has been primarily based on confirmed cases, one of the
restrictions in England with Europe’s highest virus- age, will be accelerated so that highest daily numbers since
until July 19. related death toll at nearly And the Confederation of every adult should be able to the end of February. The
128,000. British Industry urged the book a first dose by the end delta variant accounted for
Although many restrictions government to hold back of this week. around 90% of all new infec-
were eased in recent weeks, Following the announce- on the planned tapering of tions.
allowing large parts of the ment, unions joined business tax relief for businesses and As of Tuesday, around 62%
U.K. economy to reopen, a leaders to urge the Conser- extend the commercial rent of the British population had The opposition Labour Par-
number of businesses, partic- vative government to com- moratorium for the sectors received one vaccine shot, ty has put the blame for the
ularly in the hospitality and pensate those affected by the most impacted. while about 45% had two. spread of the delta variant
entertainment sectors, have delay, warning that it may tip squarely on the Conserva-
remained shuttered because many companies over the Cabinet Officer minister Mi- An analysis from Public tive government, saying it
it was not financially viable. edge and lead to a sharp rise chael Gove, a close Johnson Health England showed that was too slow in imposing the
in unemployment, which ally, said the support pro- two doses of the main vac- strictest quarantines on all ar-
After months of planning, stood at 4.7% in April. grams were created knowing cines in the U.K. are highly rivals from India.
those businesses had been that there could be delays in
preparing to reopen on June Frances O’Grady, general getting out of lockdown. But
21, the date the government secretary of the Trades Union he said he was “pretty confi-
had earmarked for the pos- Congress, said the govern- dent” there wouldn’t be an-
sible lifting of restrictions on ment should delay asking other delay in lifting restric-
social contact. But a recent businesses to contribute to tions.
spike in new infections as a the salary support program
result of the more contagious it has operated since March Johnson said health officials
delta variant upended that 2020 and retain the program would use the reopening de-
plan and has fueled concerns for as long as it’s needed. lay to drive up immunity lev-
that the restrictions may per- els, limiting the spread of the
sist beyond July 19. Under the Job Retention delta variant when restric-
Scheme, the government has tions are fully lifted.
Scientists advising the gov- been paying 80% of the sala-
ernment reckon that the delta ries of those unable to work The plan is that two-thirds of
variant, which was first found because of the restrictions. the U.K.’s adult population