Charitable campaigns and employee volunteerism

 
In 2020, the Bank Millennium Foundation and Bank Millennium joined the battle against coronavirus by endowing the amount of PLN 500,000 to the Poznań-based Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences which designed the first Polish tests to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2. The Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry was Poland’s first research unit to create a laboratory for COVID-19 diagnostic work. The test prototype, based solely on Polish reagents, was created after two weeks of intense work and was adopted for mass production. The support provided by the Bank Millennium Foundation contributed to the continuation of research on more sensitive test generations. A year after the establishment of this cooperation, in response to difficulties with diagnostics in the Wielkopolska region, the idea emerged to create a broadly accessible molecular diagnostics laboratory – PANgen, which was launched in May 2021. The laboratory, which, owing to the generosity of its sponsors, has been equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, will serve the purposes of broadly construed medical diagnostics so as to make the best use of the available technology, machinery and experience of specialists from the Viral Support Group.

The Special Support Fund for Bank Millennium Group Employees in the event of coronavirus infection and the necessity to cover the costs of treatment and rehabilitation was established in April 2020. Its resources were released on an ongoing basis at employees’ requests also in 2021.

[GRI 103-1], [GRI 103-2], [GRI 103-3], [GRI 413-1] The Bank Millennium Group attaches great significance to the involvement of its staff in social campaigns. In order to enable their pursuit of their own volunteerism ideas, competitions are held for grants to be used for the execution of interesting and socially beneficial charitable projects. Within the Bank Millennium Group, community-focused initiatives are managed chiefly by the Bank Millennium Foundation. In 2021, the formula of this type of involvement was refreshed. The employee volunteerism program #słuchaMYwspieraMY (#WElistenWEsupport) is a competition for grants provided to volunteerism projects to be carried out by the Bank’s employees for the benefit of specific individuals, organizations and local communities in need of such support. All employees of the Bank Millennium Group may participate in the program. Within its framework, various initiatives are pursuit by employees – from the idea and execution to settlement and promotion in the form of an article, photo report or video material in the Bank’s intranet space. In respect of projects involving the provision of support to individual beneficiaries, the Bank Millennium Foundation evaluated the impact on the life of the beneficiary. In turn, in respect of group beneficiaries, the project’s impact on the local community was evaluated.

 

The purpose of the #słuchaMYwspieraMY is by no means confined solely to the provision of financial support or basic necessities. In addition to the funds provided for or disbursed under the project, the following aspects also play a prominent role: commitment, time spent on helping the beneficiaries and own work by the volunteers. In 2021, grants were awarded to 21 project leaders. 139 volunteers along with their family members and friends took part in these activities. Support was granted to 2,638 beneficiaries – children taken care of by social welfare institutions, people with disabilities, preschoolers, junior and high school students, including those attending integration and special classes, and senior citizens. Every gesture, however large or small, and every item shared with the beneficiaries was thought out carefully, because the volunteers thoroughly scrutinized the stories and circumstances of the people they decided to help.

Bank Millennium and Millennium Leasing once again responded to the needs of a local community by donating computer and office equipment to the beneficiaries of the Forani Foundation, which facilitates access to work and helps children and adults in remote learning. This time, computer hardware and multifunctional devices were provided to care, medical and educational centres in Mazowieckie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodships selected by the organisation.