The German logistics provider DHL Group today said it has offered jobs to more than 30,000 refugees over the past ten years since the refugee wave of 2015, making it one of the largest employers of refugees worldwide.
Many of the current employees come from the main countries of origin for refugees—Syria, Afghanistan, and Ukraine—and they have taken on logistics labor market positions including permanent employment contracts, internships, and apprenticeships.
According to DHL, these workers are primarily employed in the delivery or sorting of letters and parcels, which are positions that feature a high number of low-threshold, entry-level jobs. After gaining those opportunities, some have now found employment in the professions for which they were once trained, while many others have been able to develop their careers within DHL Group.
“Enabling refugees with work permits to quickly enter the labor market is not only a prerequisite for social integration, it’s also in the German economy’s own interest, as it can relieve the burden on social systems and mitigate the effects of demographic change,” Thomas Ogilvie, Chief Human Resources Officer and Labor Director at DHL Group, said in a release. “We are therefore proud to be leading the way in this area and to have offered more refugees in Germany an entry into the labor market than any other company in Germany.”
In addition to receiving that corporate support, the initiative is also driven by many of DHL’s 600,000 employees worldwide, with some 18,000 employees having volunteered their time for integration roles such as translators, mentors, or provider of local support like helping people find accommodation.
DHL even offers an extra boost in language courses and job training by providing its own language learning app, which allows users to learn vocabulary from a professional context and simulate conversation situations, such as customer interactions.
