Big Employers Go It Alone in Push to Help Refugees

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 [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 07, 2017 10:14 ET (15:14 GMT)

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