IKEA looking to hire close to 500 for first Philippine store

IKEA is looking to hire close to 500 co-workers for its first Philippine store in Pasay City, said to be the biggest in the world which will house a supersized warehouse and a call center to support e-commerce operations.

The furnishing retailer said 496 positions are currently available and are to be filled up until June 2021. Details of which are posted on the IKEA Philippines website.

The new hires will join the team of 73 people currently working in the Makati office, and some 20 returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from stores abroad, primarily from the Middle East.

Among the vacancies are sales associates, recovery associates, food assistants, and customer service associations, with posts also open for part-timers.

"The IKEA vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. Creating meaningful, stable jobs and great workplaces is just one way that we fulfill this vision – more important than ever during these challenging times," Christian Rojkjaer, managing director of IKEA Southeast Asia & Mexico, said in an emailed statement.

Just last month, IKEA said it will start online operations ahead of the opening of its physical store scheduled in 2021.

The company already inked an agreement with SM Investments Corp. to lease out a 65,000 square meter area in the Mall of Asia complex in Pasay City, making it the biggest in the world.

Founded in Sweden, IKEA is said to be the world's largest home furnishing retailer with over 400 stores in 50 countries across the globe. -MDM, GMA News