Big Employers Go It Alone in Push to Help Refugees
February 07 2017 - 10:29AM
Dow Jones News
By Kelsey Gee
Dozens of big employers including Microsoft Corp., Accenture
PLC, HP Inc. and Airbnb Inc. are redoubling promises to recruit,
hire and help refugees.
The roughly 50 companies had been part of the Partnership for
Refugees, an Obama administration push aimed at expanding work
opportunity and resources for refugees in the U.S. and abroad. Now,
with a new administration in charge, the group's members have
decided to continue their plans without the government's help.
Members had planned a meeting on Jan. 31 to follow up on pledges
made in 2016 to address the displacement of millions of men and
women due to political conflict in the Middle East and elsewhere.
That gathering got greater urgency after President Donald Trump on
Jan. 27 signed an order barring new refugees from entering the U.S.
for 120 days, as part of an effort he deemed necessary to keep
terrorists from entering the U.S.
Attendees, which included Microsoft's LinkedIn, Mastercard Inc.
and a handful of tech startups, discussed updates on U.S.
government policy and the status of employment, education and
financial initiatives, according to an agenda reviewed by The Wall
Street Journal. The coalition was convened by the Tent Foundation,
the personal foundation of Chobani Inc. Chief Executive Hamdi
Ulukaya, himself a Turkish immigrant who employs hundreds of
refugees in his yogurt factories.
TripAdvisor Inc., which had earmarked $5 million in the next
three years to aid refugees, sent a representative to last week's
meeting, held at a Microsoft office in New York.
"Even though many of us in the partnership are competitors, at
the end of the day we're all fighting to do the right thing," said
Desiree Fish, a TripAdvisor spokeswoman. A spokeswoman for
Microsoft confirmed the company was part of the alliance, but
declined to offer further details. Representatives from Accenture
and the other companies in attendance didn't respond to requests
for comment.
Since the executive order was signed, more firms have pledged
additional aid for refugees. Starbucks Corp. promised to hire
10,000 refugees in 75 countries over the next five years. Airbnb on
Sunday disclosed plans to provide short-term housing for 100,000
refugees and other displaced users of the online platform globally
in the next four years, and promised $4 million to resettlement
agencies in the coming years.
Last year, President Barack Obama asked American companies to
play a bigger role in helping resettle men and women after raising
the number of refugees the U.S. would accept in fiscal 2017 to
110,000. More than 50 employers, most of which remain in the
partnership, responded with commitments to boost such investment,
members said.
The companies are paying for their own initiatives, and agreed
to proceed with or without government backing, said Alex
Konanykhin, chief executive of KMGi Group, a software company and
maker of a tool that allows companies to monitor the work of remote
employees, who was present at the meeting.
This week, a unit of KMGi plans to launch a staffing service for
refugees that allows them to create professional online profiles
and connect with employers.
Write to Kelsey Gee at kelsey.gee@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 07, 2017 10:14 ET (15:14 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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