AirBnb’s CSR during

COVID-19
Tiegan Blake
 What is AirBnb?

• Airbnb, Inc. is an online marketplace and app for

arranging or offering lodging, primarily home-stays, or
tourism experiences. The company does not own any of
the real estate listings, nor does it host events; it acts as a
broker, receiving commissions from each booking.

• Airbnb is a peer-to-peer marketplace, also known as a

sharing economy marketplace, or a two-sided
marketplace. From the legal point of view, Airbnb is a
corporation.
 What are AirBnb’s CSR
policies?
• Airbnb, has many CSR policies and initiatives in place sectioned by 4 main sectors :
Supporting Local Communities, Gender equality and Minorities, Ethnicity representation
at Airbnb and other CSR Initiatives and Charitable Donations.

• Airbnb employees receive four hours of paid time off every month to volunteer in their
local communities.

• Global Citizenship Champion program launched in 2013 involves organising charitable

contributions to causes important to their local communities in 20 cities around the
world

• Champions within the scope of Global Citizenship Champion program completed more
than 17000 hours of service in 2016.

• Airbnb runs Open Homes program that provides homes for free to those affected by
conflict, disaster, or critical illness. The program has helped more than 25,000 people in
need to find temporary housing and in 2019 the company is investing USD 20 million to
grow the platform. Airbnb aims to house 100,000 people by 2022.
• Airbnb has “Diverse Candidate Slates” rule. For every open position, women
and underrepresented minorities must be included on candidate slates
before those slates are presented to hiring managers and the manager is
allowed to proceed with filling the position.

• The peer-to-peer lodging company has a wide range of Airfinity groups that

create more awareness and advocacy around the issues employees value.
Airfinity employee groups include Able@ for employees with disabilities,
AirPride@ for LGBTQ people, Asians@, Black@, Foreignairs@, Juntos@,
Natives@ and others.

• The company runs Airbnb Open Homes a global program that provides free
or low-cost, short-term stays on our platform for individuals and families
during times of need or celebration such as medical patients travelling for
treatment, low-income students travelling to visit universities, or social
entrepreneurs travelling to change the world.[4]

• After Superstorm Sandy in US in 2012, Airbnb built a tool that enabled 1,400
Airbnb hosts in New York to open their homes to displaced neighbours.
Has Airbnb implemented any new
CSR policies to aid COVID-19?
• Airbnb is announcing a new global initiative to help connect those responding to
the COVID-19 pandemic with safe and convenient places to stay while they
carry out their critical work. The company's goal is to help house 100,000
healthcare professionals, relief workers, and first responders around the world.
Airbnb will waive all fees for stays arranged through this initiative.

• New global initiative will provide free or subsidised housing for healthcare
professionals, relief workers, and first responders, typically closer to where they
are working

• Airbnb Hosts can opt in to provide homes that follow new cleanliness protocols
based on recommendations from medical experts

• Airbnb is partnering with the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red
Crescent Societies, the International Rescue Committee, International Medical
Corps and other nonprofit organisations to help support their relief workers on
the front lines.
What about airbnb hosts?

• In terms of donations, policies and aid during this

pandemic airbnb is supporting their hosts as well and
trying to use their retained profit and capital to support
their hosts during this time.

• Airbnb  is committing $250 million to put toward hosts

who have been impacted by COVID-19. That means if a
guest cancels a reservation for check-in between March
14 and May 31 due to a COVID-19-related reason, Airbnb
will pay the host 25% of what they would normally receive
through their cancellation policy.
 Stakeholder Analysis
Positive / negative High / Low Impact Explanation

It is negative due to
the fact guests can’t
Negative socially,
Customers (Guests) Low impact travel but positive as
positive financially
they receive a full
refund.
With airbnb’s new
policy to aid hosts in
finance in terms of
consumer
cancellation. Airbnb is
Government / Both positive and trying to keep the
High impact
Economy negative economy moving and
the exchange of
money. This benefits
the government as it
improves people’s
financial position.
 Stakeholder Analysis
Positive / negative High / Low Impact Explanation

It is positive as hosts
are partially
Positive in terms of compensated in terms
Customers (Hosts) partially compensated High impact of losses and
for losses. improves their
financial stability and
disposable income.
As a shareholder of
airbnb due to the
mass amount of
refunds,
compensation to
Shareholders Negative Medium Impact hosts and donations ,
shareholders will not
be profiting from
dividends or
potentially losing
money
 Stakeholder Analysis
Positive / negative High / Low Impact Explanation

It is negative for
employees as many
articles state that due
to the influx of calls
about refunds
employees are
Employees Negative High impact
working consistently
and also due to hard
economic times and a
falling market
potential
redundancies.