What you need to know…
Costs of travel disruption:
- Direct financial costs - last minute tickets and accommodation.
- Health and safety risks to employees when travelling to certain countries.
- Stress to the employee - travel disruption can be stressful, especially if the employee is stuck abroad.
- They may be concerned that they have bills to pay and don’t want to lose their job.
- Lost hours of productivity, however remote working might mitigate this.
Legal obligations:
- You are not required to pay your employee if they are unable to get to work due to adverse weather following leisure travel.
- There is also no legal right to paid time for travel days, unless the travel itself is constituted as working time. You should have a policy to clarify what is paid when travelling for work.
- If an employee is required to work outside the UK for more than four weeks, then revised written terms must be agreed before they leave.
What you need to do…
Be prepared!
- Transparent travel policies that outline instructions in the event of travel disruptions and policies that control how overtime and expenses are approved.
- Have a plan to deal with travel disruptions due to adverse weather conditions or other issues.
- Consider a Business Continuity Plan to deal with emergencies and ensure employees are able to function quickly in the event of a disaster.
- Budget for extra costs for business travel to ensure employees are taken care of and can stay productive if travel disruptions occur. Ensure employees record and report any extra expenses.
- Be clear how policies differ for work and leisure travel.
In the event of travel disruption
- Keep an open line of communication should they need your assistance with rebooking travel or accommodation etc.
- Consider alternative working patterns - such as remote working, Video Conferencing calls or rescheduling projects or meetings, if possible.
- Deal with issues fairly and consistently to retain a good working relationship with employees