After the COVID-19 restrictions, it was great to see that so many employees were eager to volunteer in-person. Volunteering as part of a “Week of Service”, organized by Gilead, provides an opportunity to support the inspiring work of non-profit organizations in Switzerland and its local communities.
Gilead’s Week of Service began in 2017, as a way to celebrate the company’s 30th anniversary and 2022 was a significant year for Gilead in Switzerland, since our affiliate turned 15.
Already at the beginning of this year, when the Russian-led war in Ukraine broke out, Gilead Switzerland organized a Month of Service with different activities for refugees arriving in here. Employee volunteer activities included organizing housing transition and accommodation support for Ukrainian refugees in Zurich, performing translation services at Zurich Federal Asylum Center supporting SEM, and collecting monetary and supply donations.
The Week of Service in autumn was about supporting GGZ@Work in Baar. This institution offers various social services for disadvantaged people. Gilead Switzerland employees got the opportunity to get personally involved in helping the organization in separating materials like CD/DVDs in order to recycle those, sorting and ironing donated clothes for the second-hand shop that sells them at a low price, and packing and organizing fruits and vegetables to be distributed with “Tischlein deck dich” to people with limited financial means.
