Apple's Employee Giving Program broke all records in 2020

In a year plagued by the pandemic and hardships, Apple's Employee Giving Program donated more dollars and hours than ever in 2020.

The Apple Giving Program matches employee donations and volunteer hours with monetary donations to the same organization. Apple announced today that the program had its biggest year to date in 2020.

Apple highlighted several standout stories from its global workforce. These included Anthony Garrett-Leverett, a technical expert at the Twelve Oaks Apple Store in the Detroit area, who coordinated a collaborative effort with fellow Apple employee Joe Cayao to supply masks for those in need. In March, during the initial wave of the pandemic in the U.S., Garrett-Leverett worked with Cayao, who was using material from his bow-tie business to sew masks, and a local parade company that had leftover fabric from old costumes. They managed to supply 14,000 masks to area hospitals, convalescent homes, and frontline workers.

Apple employees Anthony Garrett-Leverett (L) and Joe Cayao, who collaborated to supply 14,000 masks to the Detroit area

"It feels good that we were able to do our part to help take care of others, because this pandemic has been really rough for everyone," said Cayao. "We were trying to just donate these to anyone who needed protection, because at the end of the day, we're all in this together."

Apple employees were the largest corporate team contributing to the 2020 British Red Cross's Miles for Refugees event in the United Kingdom. In the program, volunteers chose a target distance that represented real-life refugee journeys, and collected money from sponsors for traveling the distance through various physical activities.

Since its 2011 inception, Apple's employee Giving Program has raised nearly $600 million in total donations and logged 1.6 million in volunteer hours since its 2011 inception. Those dollars and hours supported 34,000 different worldwide organizations.