[By NBC-1TV H. J Yook]Management and labor union of Citibank Korea delivered 23,620,000 won to Salvation Army in front of CKI HQ Bldg. located in Da-dong, Seoul, on December 27, 2012 to support the organization’s year-end red kettle campaign. This is the 7th project of the bank’s 1+1 matching grant program started in April this year. The bank matches every 10,000 won contributed by its employees every month.

The CKI management labor union agreed in the 2011 CBA that the labor and management will jointly carry out voluntary donation programs for the low-income, socially marginalized people in the form of matching grants to the amount contributed by employees. To this end, CKI labor union initiated a “10,000 won makes you happy” campaign through which employees contribute 10,000 won out of their monthly salary every month. 1,630 employees joined the initiative to make funds totaling 400 million won. CSR representatives from both management and labor hold a committee meeting every month to review and select organizations and projects for which the funds will be used.

The labor and management have deliberated on the target groups and their needs to give benefits to groups as diverse as youth from local low-income families, unmarried mothers, North Korean children, and areas in African countries. The first round of donation was made last June to commemorate 200 years Citi. 200 bicycles were donated to help teenagers from rural areas or low-income families commuting to remote schools, and single moms were provided with living supplies and home environment improvement support.

Last September, 40 million won was sponsored to Global Sarang to help it open and run two group homes for education and nursing of children from multi-cultural families. The same amount also went to Team and Team International for building three wells and repairing ten pumps in Tana Delta, Kenya, so that the residents and children can drink clean water.

In the activity staged in November, the bank gave the Korea Food for the Hungry International, a global NGO, 30 million won of funds to provide underwear to the North Korean children. The money was used to help children in North Korea stay warm amid the intense cold of below minus 20 degrees. On the same day, some CKI employees visited Guryong village located in Gaepo-dong, Seoul, to donate and deliver 20,000 briquettes with their own hands to those in need.