Corporate Canada started stepping up in earnest today to help out with the South Asia disaster, mostly by donating cash but also through donations of services or goods. Others are facilitating either donation collections or relief. Could corporate Canada be doing more? Probably. But let's save that debate for another day and focus instead on what companies are doing rather than what Canada's largest company's are failing to do.
Here's some info culled from various press releases. (Let me know what I'm missing.) I've listed some companies, such as General Motors, whose corporate headquarters is not here but which has a significant employee or revenue base in Canada.
Of some note, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, a bank that's been the focus of the wrong kind of news for a little while, was, so far as I could tell, the first major Canadian company to volunteer some cash, offering $100,000 for disaster relief within two days of the disaster (and on a bank holiday, no less!) and announcing that donations for disaster relief would be accepted at any branch.
These releases, then, are presented in roughly the chronological order that they were announced (All dollar figures Canadian and all times Toronto time unless noted). The first press releases soliciting donations on behalf of various charitable organizations began hitting the wires on Sunday, Dec. 26 after 4 pm Toronto time:
- SAT DEC 25
- The earthquake hits at 7:58 am local time on Sunday, Dec. 26 (7:58 pm Saturday night Toronto time) and two hours later or around 10 pm on Christmas Day in Toronto, the first tsunamis crash ashore.
- MON DEC 27
- Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce of Toronto says it will donate $100,000 cash to disaster relief. (1611 EDT) Later in the week, the bank would announce that it would accept donations for disaster relief at any of its branches.
- TUE DEC 28
- Cathay Pacific of Vancouver offers to help raise money and carry supplies and aid personnel to affected areas. (1814)
- WED DEC 29
- iTravel2000 of Toronto will donate $5,000. (1300)
- Bloor Street Diner of Toronto, a restaurant operator, says its staff has offered to donate all tips received on Dec. 30 to disaster relief. Moreover, the owners of the business said they would match any tips donated and challenged other restaurant owners to do the same thing. (1330)
- Royal Bank of Canada of Toronto will donate $100,000 and will accept donations at any branch. (1351)
- The Toronto-Dominion Bank will donate $75,000 and will collect donations at any branch. (1454)
- The Bank of Nova Scotia of Toronto will donate $75,000 and will collect donations at any branch. (1525)
- Kimberley-Clark Corp. of Dallas will donate $100,000. (1559)
- Sun Life Financial of Toronto will donate $100,000. (1615)
- Bank of Montreal of Toronto will donate $75,000 and accept donations at any branch. (1632)
- Lutheran Life of Waterloo, Ont. will donate $60,000. (1657)
- SportMart of Vancouver will collect donations on behalf of the Red Cross. (1755)
- THU DEC 30
- Future Shop and Best Buy of Burnaby, B.C. donate $50,000 and will collect donations at all stores. (0700)
- Canada Newswire of Toronto made a donation of an unspecified amount. (0800)
- ExxonMobil of Irving, Tex. announces a donation of $5-million (U.S.) and will match employee and retiree contributions.
- Laurentian Bank of Montreal will accept donations for disaster relief.. (1038)
- ATB Financial of Edmonton will accept donations for disaster relief. (1207)
- Safeway Canada of Calgary will accept donations for disaster relief. (1210)
- Wal-Mart Canada of Mississauga, Ont. will accept donations for disaster relief at the checkout counter in all of its Canadian stores. (1400)
- Inco Ltd. of Toronto and its 61 per cent-owned Indonesian subsidiary, PT International Nickel Indonesia Tbk (PT Inco) will donate 5 billion Indonesia rupiah (about US$540,000). (1607)
- Canadian Tire of Toronto will donate $125,000 and collect money at its stores. (1448)
- Beacon Inn of Sidney, B.C. is prepared to donate one-half of the room rate it charges customers if the customer so requests. (1600)
- Bell Canada of Montreal will contribute $175,000. (1645)
- Air Canada of Montreal will help ferry supplies to South Asia and its flight attendants will collect money for the Red Cross on all its flights. (1800)
- Showcase of Mississauga, Ont., a retailer of unique gifts, will donate 7 per cent of all sales made this weekend. (1800)
- General Motors of Detroit, one of the world's largest corporations, announced a contribution of $1-million (U.S.) and will match what its employees contribute up to a maximum of another $1-million (U.S.) (1830)