Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings announced it is marking global volunteer month and is encouraging its staff to give back to their communities with a new Paid Volunteer Day for U.S. shoreside team members beginning in 2021 to give back to a non-profit community program of their choice. In the spirit of giving back, the company has also provided more than $2 million of in-kind humanitarian relief to support various community organizations worldwide throughout 2020 and 2021, according to a press release. 

“Dedication to Family and Community is one of our Company’s core values and we along with our team members around the globe are committed to doing good and making a lasting impact in our local communities, the communities we visit and on the local ecosystems through which we cruise. To reinforce this commitment, we are pleased to offer a new Paid Volunteer Day for our U.S. shoreside team members to provide team members an opportunity to support causes and community organizations that are most important to them,” said Frank Del Rio, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. “In addition to our volunteer efforts, even while our ships have remained unable to sail, we have continued to give back through our global humanitarian relief efforts, providing nearly $2 million of in-kind donations to organizations worldwide in 2020 and into 2021 to support various causes including COVID-19 and disaster relief efforts.”

Beginning in 2021, all full-time U.S. shoreside team members will be given the opportunity to take 8 hours of paid time off per calendar year to participate as volunteers in 501(c)(3) non-profit community programs.

In addition, as part of the Workplace Giving Program, the company supports four organizations by offering employees the opportunity to make automatic recurring or one-time payments through payroll deductions. The company said it will match each team member’s contribution up to $1,000 per year. The four nonprofit organizations include All Hands and Hearts, Kids in Distress, American Cancer Society and Virlanie.

In addition to volunteer efforts, since the global suspension of cruising began in March 2020, the company has continued to work with organizations around the world to provide much needed humanitarian relief, including over $2 million of in-kind donations to date, including:

• Approximately $1.2 million in nonperishable food and water donations to be provided to Feeding America’s local Miami food bank Feeding South Florida by the end of 2021.
• Provided nearly $275,000 of in-kind donations in the form of Just Water and non-perishable and canned goods, to support two community organizations and assist ongoing relief efforts in the Archipelago of San Andrés in Colombia after the devastating impact of Category 5 Hurricane Iota.
• More than $225,000 in dry goods and foods to benefit communities in Belize impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Provided 16 truckloads of JUST Water to benefit 17 Feeding America member food banks and other nonprofit organizations in the U.S. located in areas devastated by severe winter storms in partnership with JUST® Goods, Inc. and The Will & Jada Smith Family Foundation.
• Over $30,000 of in-kind donations including 10 pallets of responsibly packaged, plant-based cartons of JUST Water to benefit the Southeast Alaska Food Bank.
• For GivingTuesday, matched every case of Just Water purchased in December through their online store, with a water donation to local food banks in Miami and New York City. The joint effort resulted in the delivery of nearly 150,000 JUST Water cartons.