1 December 2020
SINGAPORE – Manulife Global will be giving each of its 35,000 employees around the world the spending equivalent of $50 CAD in their local currency to ‘pay it forward’ and create acts of kindness in their local communities this holiday season.
“We believe that our success as a Company depends on the success of the communities we serve,” said Manulife President and Chief Executive Officer Roy Gori. “By giving back, even with a small gesture, we can and will help make the world a better place.”
Manulife is encouraging employees around the world to donate gifts or make donations to individuals or organizations in their communities. As well, contributions can be pooled with other colleagues should they wish to demonstrate their support collectively. Employees will be encouraged to share their stories of support on social media using the hashtag #ManulifeActofKindness. All posts and stories will be shared on www.manulife.com/actofkindness.
Dr. Khoo Kah Siang, Chief Executive Officer at Manulife Singapore, said, “A silver lining that has emerged amid the pandemic is the spread of community-driven action, where we have witnessed a burgeoning of self-organised groups and individuals going the extra mile to help those in need. One of Manulife’s core values is sharing our humanity, and it brings us joy to empower our employees to be part of this rapidly growing giving movement. With these little acts of kindness, we hope to make a difference in the lives of those around us.”
Manulife and John Hancock have taken a range of actions this year to support communities around the world. In response to COVID-19, Manulife has made donations of nearly $5 million focused on several critical fronts, including food security for the most vulnerable; supporting the well-being of health care workers; enabling mental health support through digital programs; offering financial relief to customers; and facilitating matching donations and virtual volunteer programs.
Standing in solidarity with the local government and those impacted by the pandemic, Manulife Singapore has also enhanced its protection coverage for all customers via a COVID-19 Customer Support Package, including the following benefits:
S$1 million COVID-19 support fund
Effective from 17 February to an extended date of 31 December 2020, all Manulife Singapore policyholders are entitled to the following protection coverage:
(1) Diagnosis Benefit(s)
Customers diagnosed with COVID-19 in Singapore will receive a one-time immediate cash benefit of S$1,500. If the policyholder with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 is hospitalised for 5 days or more, an additional cash benefit of S$2,000 (i.e. a total of S$3,500) would be payable.
(2) Additional Death Benefit
In the unfortunate event that death occurs following the diagnosis of COVID-19, an additional lump sum of S$30,000 will be paid out on top of the death benefit from the customer’s existing policy.
Extension of Grace Period for Premium Payment
To further ease the financial pressures of policyholders affected by the pandemic while ensuring that their health and protection needs continue to be supported, Manulife Singapore extended a grace period of up to 6 months for premium payments, from between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021.
Giving Back to Healthcare Workers
As a gesture of appreciation to frontline staff for their tremendous efforts amid the pandemic, Manulife Singapore offered 2,000 complimentary admission passes to the Manulife Sky Nets – Walking at Jewel Changi Airport to healthcare workers in Singapore from 25 November to 25 December 2020. The month-long initiative was held in support of SG Cares Giving Week 2020.
Donation to Courage Fund
Manulife Singapore also committed to championing vulnerable groups amid the COVID-19 outbreak with a S$100,000 donation to The Courage Fund.
For more information on Manulife Singapore’s COVID-19 relief efforts, please visit manulife.com.sg.
About Manulife
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across our offices in Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. We provide financial advice, insurance, and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2019, we had more than 35,000 employees, over 98,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving almost 30 million customers. As of September 30, 2020, we had $1.3 trillion (US$943 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made $31.2 billion in payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 155 years. We trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong.
About Manulife Singapore
Established in 1899, Manulife Singapore provides insurance, retirement and wealth management solutions to meet the financial needs of our customers across their various life stages. Customers can readily access our solutions through our extensive multi-channel distribution network. In addition to our established agency force, we distribute our products through a number of specialist partners, including banks and financial advisory firms.
For more information on Manulife Singapore, visit manulife.com.sg.
Media Contact
Esther Subramaniam / Derick Lee
manulife@aka-asia.com