Business travel is not just the bastion of the procurement department; personnel and HR also need to take note as frequent travel is a little known and under-investigated stress trigger.
Of course any HR manager worth his/her salt, will be only too aware that stress – and distress – among employees causes impaired economic performance. Across the EU, nearly 25 per cent of workers are affected and stress is responsible for 50-60 per cent of all lost days. It’s also rated the second most common work-related health problem and estimated to cost the EU €20 billion annually. It’s also on the increase.
More progressive HR departments and procurement professionals involved in travel understand this and no longer base buying decisions solely on price. They create policies that suit the traveller and not just their budget. They are mindful of their corporate social responsibility and duty of care towards employees. They may miss out on short term savings, but they will also avoid making much bigger long-term financial losses.
It’s time that a more responsible and strategic view of the issues involved in business travel was taken by all, and all HR departments appreciated and understood their CSR and duty of care obligations.
If you’re interested in reading more on this topic, you can visit http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/news/features/1040063/Employers-duty-care-business-travel-stress-free-employees/ to read the entire feature.
Posted by David Chapple, event director, Business Travel & Meetings SHow
Sources: ‘The Institute of Travel and Meetings, ICARUS report’, Frequent Traveller Wellbeing; Inicio 2010. For more information, www.icarus.itm.org.uk
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