When the employee has to travel on business
Meeting a customer, following up on a project, attending an external training course, prospecting to attract new customers... These are just a few of the reasons why one of your employees needs to travel. In fact, whatever the level of your company and whatever the sector of activity, business travel is necessary. Under French law, even if business travel is not mentioned in the employment contract, the employee cannot refuse to carry out an assignment. For some professions, such as sales and technical staff, including plumbers and bricklayers, travel is part of the job. However, the company employing them must cover the various expenses arising from these business trips.
How can employers optimize their employees' business travel?
Business travel is expensive for companies. Between plane and train tickets, hotels, and other expenses such as meals and cabs, the bill quickly becomes very high. The best way to make the most of this expense is to optimize employee travel.
In fact, the boss can take advantage of an appointment to ask his colleague to go prospecting in the same region, to follow up on a job site, or why not go and meet the branch manager to check up on activities. As the saying goes, the company kills several birds with one stone and cuts its expenses. Instead of having to make several return trips, in a single trip the employee can solve two or three problems at once.
There are also other ways to optimize commuting. Companies can encourage employees to telecommute once or twice a week, to carpool for car journeys, or to use mobile devices such as tablets to work.
Business travel: what risks does the employee run during the trip?
As with any journey, there are risks involved when you're on the road. The same applies to employees on business trips. These risks are of several kinds.
- Road accidents. Stress, poor road conditions, the weather... your employee may be involved in a road accident.
- Air accidents. We're not just talking about the risk of plane crashes. We're also talking about the aches and pains your employee may suffer if he's always between planes: fatigue, ear infections, circulatory problems.
- Falls and slips. Everyone's slipped and fallen before. But employees on the move can also fall victim to this type of accident. Particularly when working on construction sites.
- Other risks, such as allergies and exposure to certain diseases, are particularly associated with travel to foreign countries. If the employee travels to a country in the throes of conflict, there is a risk that he or she may be injured, kidnapped or, at worst, killed.
Once the risks have been identified, the employer or manager must be able to put in place strategies to ensure the safety of his or her employees, and even their well-being.
If the employee uses his or her vehicle for business travel, it is essential to maintain the vehicle and make regular visits to the garage. It is also essential for the employer to run road safety campaigns within the company.
For employees traveling to foreign countries, it is imperative to check that all vaccinations are up to date, and if necessary to ensure their safety in a country where there is conflict.
It's true that a company needs good results, but it also needs to think about the well-being of its employees, so that they are able to deliver good results. This can mean taking days off after strenuous business trips.
Should I use a travel agency to organize my employees' business trips?
In fact, it's an excellent idea. Travel agencies like CTA Business Travel help companies with all aspects of business travel.
Thanks to CTA Business Travel, companies can save on costs such as air tickets and transportation. This is because the travel agency can negotiate with airlines and hotels. What's more, this travel agency offers round-the-clock assistance to employees on the move. It can help in a number of areas, such as booking cancellations or car rentals. CTA Business Travel also offers its customers a wide range of insurance cover. These insurances are tailored to companies' needs and means. These insurances cover loss of luggage, flight and connection delays, business repatriation assistance, and a lump-sum payment in the event of an accident, to name but a few.
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