Carrefour Brazil to fund up to 80% of college tuition for black trainees

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Carrefour Grupo Brasil has joined forces with the Central Única das Favelas (Unified Community of Favelas – CUFA) to create the Programa de Estágio Afirmativo 2021 (Affirmative Internship Program 2021), a new kind of trainee program to hire and select black people who will have up to 80% of their studies supported by the company.

The initiative is part of the company’s actions after the death of João Alberto Silveira Freitas, aka João Beto, murdered last November outside a supermarket store in Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul).

The program is also aimed at fighting racism and intends to create opportunities for black people in vulnerable situations from the city’s peripheral regions, to jointly enter the undergraduate program and the job market.

Launched this week, the first class gathered candidates from the Paraisópolis, Brasilândia, Parque Santo Antônio, Heliópolis and 10 other favelas, who will undergo a selection process. Among the steps, candidates will take tests, and attend panels with Carrefour managers until they reach the university entrance exam.

“It is very important that Carrefour joins us in our mission to implement an anti-racist agenda throughout society, covering all spheres. It is a great step forward in our cause that a group this size has taken on the challenge of including more black youths in the labor market, supporting them from the bottom up,” said Celso Athayde, CUFA’s founder.

Development

The new trainees will undergo a training period within the company until they are offered corporate positions at the group’s headquarters and at Carrefour Bank. Positions are available in the areas of technology, finance, commercial, sustainability, legal, marketing, textiles, purchasing, and filling stations.

The internship program runs for 2 years. In addition to having their studies paid for, and a stipend, selected candidates will receive medical assistance, life insurance, transportation and meal vouchers, and discounts on the supermarket card.

“We understand that in addition to opening jobs we need to go deeper and provide conditions for these young people to be included and have a promising future. That is why we have included a bachelor’s or a technological degree in the program,” says Daniela Faria, Training Manager at Carrefour Grupo Brasil.

Future trainees may choose between 2 and 4-year college courses. In the case of technological courses, Carrefour will pay 80% of tuition until completion of studies, and for bachelor’s degree courses, the company will be responsible for paying 80% over 2 years.

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