“Arrived. Accepted.” awareness campaign When it all comes together

Long before the influx of refugees started to make headlines and long before people over here began to see the true value in welcoming highly educated and skilled people from over there, the facility services industry has consistently been an example of diversity and integration.The facility services industry as a whole is truly setting the benchmark when it comes to hiring people from immigration backgrounds, be it as trainees or employees. The business we’re in makes an important contribution to the overall integration of foreign nationals who want to fulfill their aspirations in our country. German facility services providers may well not be pioneers in matters of social and cultural integration, but they are definitely in first place today. Accurate census figures aren’t in yet, but the proportion of foreign employees in our industry easily reaches 50 percent and more in certain regions, especially in urban centers. It is not a rare thing to find companies in our industry that employ staff from over 100 different countries. Immigration means everybody winsThe German ‘Willkommenskultur’ – a word that describes an open and engaging attitude towards new arrivals from other countries – has clearly benefited the facility services sector. As an industry we would be considerably worse off without the diversity we have on our collective payroll. In fact, some areas would simply grind to a halt if it weren’t for our foreign colleagues willing to get the job done. Across the board, companies are increasingly in need of qualified employees, and the situation is likely to become even more critical over the course of the next years. This alone makes foreign employees indispensable to a functioning facility services industry: They are the ones who will ultimately ensure that we will be able to continue delivering our services. “Like no other business sector, ours is kept up and running thanks to so many nationalities and cultures coming together,” commented Johannes Bungart, Managing Director of the German Federal Building Cleaning Contractors Guild (Bundesinnungsverband des Gebäudereiniger-Handwerks) at the outset of the image campaign “Arrived. Accepted.” that was presented in the June 2015 issue of rationell reinigen. “In launching the ‘Arrived. Accepted’ campaign, both the Guild and rationell reinigen have taken a clear stand in support of respect and tolerance, emphatically rejecting xenophobia and social exclusion. Our industry makes a valuable and successful contribution to integration, and we have every right to be proud,” Thomas Dietrich, Head of the Federal Guild, emphasized on the occasion of the guild members meeting in Berlin. The campaign has arrived, tooThe joint initiative by the federal building cleaning contractors guild and rationell reinigen has been met with an incredibly enthusiastic response, both by the industry and the general public. Reactions from business and trade associations have been consistently positive. The message that is already resonating within cleaning services companies and the various trade guilds on a national level is also coming through at the local level. One example: The campaign visuals are also being used for advertisements in local newspapers, for instance, to further underscore the industry’s welcoming culture within the community. Large posters can be ordered, too, for display at events and other venues to highlight the headway made by the trade in the area of integration. Available in sets of four, the “Integration Campaign I” posters can be ordered free of charge from the BIV online shop or by sending an e-mail to biv@diegebaeudedienstleister.de. So far, the posters have been a resounding success: The first print run was scooped up by service providers and guilds within two weeks and a second one is barely meeting demand. All this is clear evidence of the extent to which the industry identifies with the topic of integration, and the importance it attaches to welcoming and fostering diversity in its midst. Sparking a positive dynamicIn addition to “Arrived. Accepted.”, many other companies have launched campaigns to showcase the integration successes achieved by the building cleaning trade. The video by Breer Gebäudedienste (Iserlohn) is just one example and it can be downloaded from the company website at www.breer.de/unternehmen/different-faces. Another is the donation of 50 bicycles for refugee children by Niederberger Gruppe. Or take the ‘Social Days’ organized by Dussman Group to make asylum seekers feel welcome. Many other businesses, large and small, in our industry are taking a stand and taking action. An Integration Award to recognize progressThe public-relations committee of the federal building cleaning service contractors guild sent another clear signal: At the suggestion of its new director, Holger Eickholz, BIV will introduce a special award to recognize successful achievements in the area of diversity and integration by member companies. This new award, which takes the place of the previous Apprenticeship Award, will be presented for the first time on the occasion of the General Meeting in Dresden in November 2016. The decision to institute this new award is yet another strong statement by the building cleaning services trade in support of diversity in the workforce. Peter Hartmann | peter.hartmann@holzmann-medien.de

“Arrived. Accepted.” awareness campaign When it all comes together

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