CORPORATE TRAVEL

Asia-Pacific - Companies in Asia-Pacific are more concerned with keeping corporate travel budget low than safeguarding their employees' safety during work-related trips.

According to a survey by global healthcare, medical assistance and security services provider International SOS, a third of 165 respondents said their companies only spent between one and 10% on employees' travel safety and security. But respondents think that insurance coverage is adequate to mitigate travelling risks, with 82.7% providing employees with travel insurance. Only 9.4% said their company conducts travel safety training for employees. Even 75% of companies that send executives to high risk countries admitted they do not see the need to conduct travel safety training for these employees.

Tony Ridley, director of security services for International SOS in Asia-Pacific, said many organisations with operations across the region do not fully understand the "duty of care obligations" to their corporate travellers. Ridley said their approach to travel health and security appears to be "more reactive than proactive".

Instead of basing travel policies or budgets on historical data, Ridley suggested using future events as a guideline. Or else, when a major event such as a volcanic eruption or an earthquake occurs, Ridley said companies would be unable to adapt. "Companies need to take a close look at how many people are actually involved in the travel aspect and who is responsible when an incident occurs."

Close to a quarter of companies also dismissed the need for additional security risk planning when employees attend international tradeshows or conferences outside their home country. The survey said such high-profile events are typically "the focal point of protests and unrest by local and travelling demonstrators, irrespective of location".

Ridley said frequent corporate travellers face greater risks than any other employee because they often visit locations different from the norm. "Training that can help them better prepare to cope with car accidents, delayed air travel, natural disasters will save companies significant time and money in the future."

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