Sodexho Service Vouchers and Cards Introduces Meal Vouchers for Paid and Unpaid Volunteers

(Paris, November 30, 2006) - Drawing on its expertise in service vouchers, Sodexho Service Vouchers and Cards has introduced a new offer aimed at the non-profit community-meal vouchers for paid and unpaid volunteers working for associations and foundations. Building on the new French law on voluntary service, the offer aims to encourage volunteer work in France. With this new addition to its range of service vouchers and food service solutions, Sodexho has reaffirmed its support for and involvement in non-profit organizations.

Close ties to the non-profit community

Sodexho already offers a range of services to non-profit organizations, including meal vouchers, employment vouchers and special multi-purpose vouchers that enable the disadvantaged to pay for food and other necessities, as well as cultural, educational, sports and leisure activities, with the goal of facilitating their integration into society. The existing portfolio of services has now been expanded and enhanced by the addition of special meal vouchers for paid and unpaid volunteers.

For Hervé Thomas, Managing Director, Sodexho Service Vouchers and Cards, the new service reaffirms Sodexho's commitment to the non-profit community: “We're delighted to support the development of volunteer work through meal vouchers that can be used as an incentive to attract and retain volunteers.”    

Synergy with food services

For many years now, Sodexho has been catering special events, such as the Vatican's World Youth Day, the Rugby World Cup and the Olympic Games, which attract a number of volunteers. With the new meal vouchers, Sodexho's teams will be able to offer event organizers an even more comprehensive service to meet all their catering needs. Sodexho is the only food services and facilities management company that offers a global solution covering onsite food services and service vouchers and cards.

All the advantages of an ordinary meal voucher

Any association or foundation recognized by the French government as being “of public utility” can give these new vouchers to its volunteers. Modeled on the existing Sodexho meal voucher, the new vouchers offer the following advantages:

• They can be used by paid and unpaid volunteers to pay all or part of their meal in any of the 150,000 restaurants and food outlets that accept meal vouchers.
• They offer tax advantages for both parties. The association or foundation does not have to pay payroll and other taxes and the volunteer is not taxed.
• They can be deployed quickly and easily by the association or foundation involved.

An attractive incentive for volunteers

The new vouchers are perfectly in line with the French government's determination to promote volunteer work, a key enabler of community initiatives, local activities and information networks. By giving them access to meal vouchers, which until now were reserved exclusively for employees, Sodexho is helping volunteers to gain proper recognition, while also reducing the impact of volunteer work on their personal finances. The vouchers will also help to attract and retain new volunteers who want to give to the community through non-profit organizations.

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About Sodexho Service Vouchers and Cards
A Sodexho Alliance subsidiary, Service Vouchers and Cards provides public and private sector clients with a full range of innovative services designed to motivate and retain employees and to optimize management of compensation policies. For local and national authorities, Sodexho also designs and manages tailored solutions for the deployment of social assistance programs. With more than 100 million vouchers issued in France each year, Sodexho Service Vouchers and Cards is a market leader in the provision of payment media for a broad range of services and products, including meals, training programs, gifts and leisure activities as well as childcare and other human services.