AbbVie is looking to drive change at a local and national level with the latest iteration of its volunteering scheme.
In what is the pharma’s now eighth annual “Week of Possibilities,” more than 14,000 AbbVie employees across 50 countries are getting together to help with a range of projects for local communities in their area.
In the last week of June, AbbVie’s workers are teaming up with what it calls “trusted community partners” to work on hands-on projects, which include school renovations, “beautifying” outdoor spaces and sorting donations at food banks, according to a press release.
In the U.S., AbbVie’s volunteers in north Chicago will help clean up several local schools as well as engage in STEM activities, put together backpacks and kits for students and help sort and distribute books and food, while also building two single family homes for families in need.
“Since AbbVie was founded 10 years ago, we have been committed to supporting our local communities through volunteering,” said Claudia Carravetta, president of the AbbVie Foundation and vice president of corporate responsibility and global philanthropy, in the release.
“Our volunteering programs are informed by listening to our community partners first to understand the areas of most significant need. I'm proud that during this year's Week of Possibilities we will have more than 14,000 employees working alongside our nonprofit partners to maximize the impact for communities in need.”
AbbVie, which markets blockbuster immunology meds Humira, Rinvoq and Skyrizi, is also celebrating 10 years since its creation, having split off from Abbott in 2013. Abbott is now a pure medtech company, with AbbVie becoming an independent drugs and pharma R&D business.
That anniversary has also seen it put employees at its heart, making them the primary voice of the decade celebration campaign to enable them to “express their pride” and show what it’s like to work at the company.