Pekao volunteers set off to Poland to implement social projects

The number of volunteers at Bank Pekao S.A. increases every year. Soon, thanks to the 9th edition of the "We are close" initiative, bank employees will be able to implement projects that are important for local communities throughout Poland.

The idea of helping those in need and involvement in numerous charitable, educational, sports and health-promoting campaigns have become a permanent part of the organizational culture of Bank Pekao S.A. The comprehensive employee volunteering program is implemented in accordance with the Bank's Strategy for 2021-2024 and fits into the fourth pillar of the bank's business strategy, i.e. "responsibility", and above all in the area of "society", and the goals indicated in the second pillar of the ESG Strategy, i.e. "engagement".

Every year, the number of people willing to participate in volunteering activities among Bank Pekao S.A. employees increases. In 2021, 1,170 employees took part in them, a year later 1,230, and last year as many as 1,747 people. In 2023, a record number of 9,365 hours were devoted to volunteer activities.

Currently, the bank has started accepting applications for the "We are close" grant program intended for Pekao volunteers. This is the 9th edition of the aid project, which is becoming more and more popular among bank employees every year. The competition grants awarded will help finance important social goals among local communities, including renovating an exercise room for the disabled, equipping an animal shelter with medicines, organizing exercises for seniors and educational campaigns for young people. The winning projects from the current edition of the competition will be implemented in June.

Since 2019, thanks to the "We are close" initiative, teams of bank volunteers have implemented 283 aid projects. Volunteers most often engage in campaigns for education, ecology, culture, history, blood donation, counteracting exclusion, health protection, sports promotion, support for seniors and refugees from Ukraine, and helping animals.

By getting involved in subsequent aid projects, volunteers feel responsible for the places they live in and those in need in their neighborhood. Volunteering and the values of SIMPLY, TOGETHER, BRAVELY and RESPONSIBLY go hand in hand.

- I am glad that volunteering at Pekao is becoming more and more popular, as evidenced by the increasing number of people applying, among others. for the "We are close" project. Our common helping opens hearts, integrates people and allows people to live better, especially for those most in need. Personally, I see that participation in such campaigns translates into better employee relations. I also like to participate in them. Thanks to these activities, we can really help a selected social group in a specific way, even in the remotest corner of Poland. This gives you additional energy to act - says Leszek Skiba, president of the management board of Bank Pekao S.A.

The activities of Pekao volunteers in 2023 were aimed at education, helping those in need, equalizing opportunities and preventing exclusion, as well as maintaining and disseminating national traditions and cultural heritage. An important element of the program were educational activities aimed at children, youth and adults.

The main forms of volunteering organized at the bank are: volunteering with social partners, the "We are close" grant competition and employee initiatives.

In 2023, the bank's volunteering partners were:

UNEP/GRID-Warsaw Center - Department of the National Environmental Protection Foundation, Apiterra Foundation, Warsaw Banking Institute Foundation, Zdrowy Ruch Foundation, Warsaw Uprising Museum, Polish Red Cross, Anthill Association, SOS Children's Villages Association, Society for the Protection of Animals in Poland.

- Volunteering at Pekao is growing. Every year, there are more and more people who want to join in helping those in need. This gives us organizers motivation and energy to act, but also hope for a better tomorrow. Each of us can find ourselves in a situation of need and the fact that there are so many people of good will fills us with optimism, says Rafał Utracki, president of the management board of the Bank Pekao S.A. Foundation.

Information about key initiatives and employee participation is presented in brochures about volunteering available on the bank's website: Volunteering - Bank Pekao S.A.