ABN AMRO Bank N : 'Bizarre' numbers of ABN AMRO employees sign up to volunteer for ABN AMRO Foundation

The ABN AMRO Foundation community has boomed over the past month. More than four hundred of the bank's employees have registered as volunteers to help out children in disadvantaged situations.

News article 5 February 2021

ABN AMRO Foundation Social impact

Foundation

Even during normal circumstances, inequality of opportunity is a major problem for those affected, but due to lockdowns things have taken a turn for the worse. Tackling this issue has never been more relevant, especially where children are concerned. It seems many ABN AMRO employees agree, as they have taken action in droves when ABN AMRO Foundation put out a request for more volunteers.

'Bizarre numbers', says Marielle Versluis, Regional Coordinator at ABN AMRO Foundation, about the response so far. 'With these 6,903 volunteers we can truly make a difference for underprivileged children and adolescents. Now more than ever. For instance, look at the rising number of schools that have registered for "Remote Buddy" over the past few weeks. There's a huge need for buddies who read books to children from home, as especially in in the first two years of primary school, a lot of kids have not made sufficient reading mileage yet due to the coronavirus pandemic. The campaign has ended, but we're still encouraging more employees to become volunteers through our Foundation.'

Hundreds of ABN AMRO employees went the extra mile in joining the ambassador campaign, posting about their 'second job' as Foundation volunteer on LinkedIn. As evidenced by the inflow of new sign-ups, this action inspired their professional networks and hundreds of their own colleagues to follow suit.

Our volunteering colleagues are happy to introduce themselves:

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Volunteering in company time: it's possible!

ABN AMRO supports volunteering in both words and actions. If you work for the bank, you get time off for volunteering activities. Why? Because we as a bank take our social responsibility seriously, and because our employees, by volunteering, can make a meaningful difference for others. After all, social engagement is one of our core values.

Want to learn more about ABN AMRO Foundation? Find out here.

Curious about what our colleagues are doing in the Foundation, or about expert opinions on inequality of opportunity and volunteer work in the Netherlands? Visit the campaign homepage.

A socially engaged bank? Find out here what else ABN AMRO does to promote financial resilience, financial inclusion and equal opportunities

Want to learn more about inequality of opportunity? Listen here to our podcast in which professional and lay experts discuss the issue.