Critically evaluate and discuss IKEA's Human Resource concepts and the role of HR professionals

Introduction

The purpose of this portfolio is to comprehensively showcase employment relations for IKEA Company. Originating from Southern Sweden and led by its founder Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA transformed into a from a mail order business to a furniture company in the 1940s. The brand pioneered several elements of modern furniture retailing such as minimalistic and practical design and self assembly. The company witnessed significant expansion in the 1980s by entering dynamic new markets such as the U.S, UK and France and commenced operations in Russia and Japan by 2000s. At present, IKEA is a globally recognized brand which offers a complete furniture solution for the entire household at affordable and budget friendly rates without compromising on the quality. The components of this portfolio consist of highlighting the philosophy and understandings of employment relations, objectives for effective employment relations at IKEA, the legal obligations that the organization must adhere to, organising and unions, individual contracts and collective bargaining, equal opportunities for staff, unfair dismissal, conflict management, casualization and elements of comparative ER that are useful for the firm. 

Personal Details

Name: [Enter Name Here]
Organisation: IKEA Company
Designation: HR Manager

Philosophy and Understandings of Employment Relations for IKEA

Employment relations addresses rules and regulations that control employment relations and the underlying processes through which these rules are implemented. These rules are enforced when an employee provides his or her services to an employer to fulfill responsibilities and roles that are devised by the latter. Understanding employment relations is essential for both workers and organisations or the management of a company. Therefore, from a philosophical perspective, employment relations aim to safeguard the rights and interests of both employees and employers (Kalleberg, 2009). For example, employees should have awareness about standard and fair market wages, working conditions and the level of autonomy that they have in an organization. Similarly, employment relations are important for employers to address areas such as legal compliance, employee performance and conflict management. The employment relations approach to the employee-employer relationship is pluralist whereas the HRM approach is rooted in understanding leadership policies which can support the psychological well-being of employees. This is known as a unitarist perspective. IKEA adheres to this perspective because the human resources department has a significant role to play in managing employment relations at the organization. Moreover, internal HR policies are rigorously implemented at the company to handle employ grievances and manage conflicts in addition to managing other aspects of employment relations.