Sustainability
Our employees volunteer for society
Zurich promotes volunteering work Each year, employees have the opportunity to take part in social or environmental volunteering projects on a day of their choice.
Zurich promotes volunteering work All employees have the opportunity to engage in voluntary work on a workday of their choice each year. There is no obligation to do so; charitable work is done on a voluntary basis. Similarly, Zurich does not dictate the nature of the volunteering, but it does provide a few options:
- Once a year, Zurich employees cook for people struggling with poverty at the Gassencafé Sunestube in the city of Zurich, which is run by the Sozialwerke Pfarrer Sieber (Pastor Sieber Social Work Foundation)
- Trainees of Zurich Switzerland help the environmental organization Pro Natura to clean up nature reserves, conserving the habitats of plants and animals.
- Each year, numerous Zurich employees help to keep the Zurich Vitaparcours in good shape.
- Those who prefer to help out from home have the option of "virtual volunteering." Virtual volunteering refers to voluntary, unpaid work performed completely or at least predominantly via the Internet, i.e. online volunteering.
The opportunity to get involved is well received: More than half of all Zurich employees worldwide volunteer for a good cause on one workday each year. Not least because their efforts pay off twice over: The Company's Z Zurich Foundation makes a donation for each voluntary assignment completed. The total proceeds for a single year are donated by Zurich Switzerland to a charitable organization. Recipients of donations in previous years have included the Stiftung Schweizerische Schule für Blindenführhunde in Allschwil (Foundation for the Swiss Guide Dog School) and the Ombuds Office Children's Rights Switzerland.
Companies which fail to recognize their ecological and social responsibility disappoint their customers, employees, business partners and investors in equal measure. Conversely, those who take action also benefit themselves: Doing business sustainably gives companies a competitive advantage.
Franziska Tirziu, Head Strategy, Sustainability & CEO Office
