Skift Take
There’s a clear dilemma about sending staff back out on the road, and who should have the final say, in this summer of second waves.
With most of the technical challenges resolved, travel managers are now grappling with their consciences and asking: Is it really safe for our people to travel?
The question has admittedly been around for several months now, but is resurfacing due to the latest waves of coronavirus spikes and a growing uncertainty over insurance.
There can be many stakeholders involved when it comes to signing off permission for a trip, but travel managers are looking to human resource departments in particular over perceptions of liability. Because in tragic circumstances, such as death or where an employee is involved in a life-changing incident, corporations that are found liable will also be paying out millions of dollars.
Navigating the Grey Area
“The HR department is caught between a rock and a hard place,” one global travel manager, who wished to remain anonymous, told Skift. "A lot of people I’ve talked to outside my company are unwilling to put their name on a document and say, yes it’s OK to travel."
As a result, there is a grey area over who takes responsibility. “As an individual, as a human being, do I want to take that risk?” the manager added. “I’m not willing to start saying what the policy should be, if in two months or six months we start seeing a second wave. I don’t want that policy to be the route to someone suffering illness."
These conversa
