Trade union advises

Kika/Leiner cannot be saved – 1400 jobs in jeopardy

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH, krone.at-Grafik)

Kika/Leiner still has around 1400 employees in Austria, but their jobs are now in jeopardy following the insolvency. However, the trade union advises employees to exercise caution.

Job cuts and a restructuring plan did not help, Kika/Leiner had to file for insolvency again after 2023. The company's approximately 1,400 employees are particularly affected. The trade union GPA advises them not to take any hasty steps: "Don't sign anything, don't take any unauthorized steps, don't resign. You could lose your entitlements."

Trade union advises: "Seek advice!"
Michael Pieber, Managing Director of the trade union GPA Niederösterreich, explains: "In the event of insolvency, the insolvency pay fund takes over the payment of outstanding claims. Employees are therefore protected from losing money due to insolvency." 

Anyone who resigns themselves or signs an agreement jeopardizes their claims. Pieber therefore advises those affected to seek advice; the GPA is available to employees in close cooperation with the Chamber of Labor. 

Harbinger of the Signa collapse
When René Benko's Signa card house began to collapse, Kika/Leiner was still part of Signa Holding. Although Signa sold the furniture chain in mid-2023, the baby had already fallen into the well at the time and Kika/Leiner filed for its first insolvency shortly after the sale. 

At this point, Signa had made further relatively surprising sales after years of aggressive growth, including a 49.9 percent stake in the luxury department store KaDeWe in Berlin. Signa Holding finally filed for insolvency at the end of November 2023. 

This was extremely inconvenient for the ailing furniture chain Kika/Leiner and its restructuring officer. Although it was publicly announced that it "would not be affected by Signa's insolvency", Signa still owed Kika/Leiner creditors, including the tax office, a total of around 15 million euros. 

It is now officially unclear what will happen to the former top dog of the furniture industry. However, the company's statements on the matter were anything but optimistic.