CREATIVE SNACKS
Hiring refugees, and helping them succeed
Finding meaning in a new venture… During the planning stages of their business
in late 2009, Marius Andersen's wife, Hilary, happened upon a newspaper article describing
the struggles and difficult working conditions of Burmese refugees right in their hometown
of Greensboro, N.C. Their stories struck a chord with the couple, who were preparing to hire
a fleet of employees for their new venture.
"We figured, if we give an opportunity to the people who have the least opportunity,
then this could be a good place to work," says Andersen. Through Church World Services,
a nonprofit organization that runs a refugee resettlement program, the business hired four
employees and solidified its commitment to a safe and stable work environment, starting
new hires above minimum wage, with health insurance and a chance at upward mobility.
Creative Snacks' staff, which has grown to 60, includes 28 full-time refugees today.
Discovering mutual benefits… Loyalty runs high at Creative Snacks. Just look to
the company's turnover: in four years of business, only two employees have quit voluntarily.
PHOTO: CREATIVE SNACKS
Employing immigrants from Nepal, Burma, Vietnam and Iraq, to
work in its snack business was just the beginning of how the company founders help people in need.
Strong bonds have formed,
often blurring the lines
between professional and
personal. Andersen cites
a time when an employee
came to work clearly ill. His
wife drove the employee to a
doctor and then home, where
she met the woman's family.
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