Etihad launch staff volunteer programme
Airline members will receive full salary for up to five days outside of office to help at Games
Etihad Aviation Group reinforced its commitment to the Special Olympics by launching an employee volunteer programme yesterday.
Through the programme, employees will continue to receive their full salary for up to five days out of the office to volunteer at the Games.
The initiative aims to recruit 500 employee volunteers for the upcoming Special Olympics IX Mena Games in March of this year, and a further 1,000 volunteers for the 2019 Special Olympics World Games, both of which will take place in Abu Dhabi.
Etihad Group chief executive officer (CEO) Tony Douglas personally signed up as a volunteer and said: “We are honoured to sponsor the Special Olympics and to provide our employees with the opportunity to support this major sporting event. A number of our team members have already been seconded to the local organising committee to provide their expertise and support. With this new initiative, we hope to provide a greater number of our employees an opportunity to take part in this important and unique experience, and play a small role in ensuring its success.”
The 2018 Special Olympics IX Mena Games will take place in Abu Dhabi between March 1422, involving more than 1,000 athletes from 33 countries competing across 17 sports.
Meanwhile, the 2019 Special Olympics World Games will bring more than 7,000 athletes from 170 nations to Abu Dhabi from 22 disciplines over the same dates next year.
Special Olympics World Games Abu Dhabi 2019 CEO Peter Wheeler, said: “It is great to have Etihad’s support for the Games and implement the free volunteer hours system for their staff.
“Not only that but having the company’s Group CEO, Tony Douglas, sign up as one of our volunteers is testament to their commitment to Special Olympics. Volunteers will play an invaluable role in the Games and companies such as Etihad are leading the way in helping us to ensure the Games are a huge success.”
Abu Dhabi will become the first Middle Eastern city to host the event after beating bids from Vancouver and Munich to stage the Games.
More than 20,000 overseas visitors are expected to join tens of thousands of spectators from across the UAE.