On-demand Webcast | Moving business travel forward in Canada
Wondering what the return to travel is starting to look like and what preparations your business needs to make?
For our June webcast, Brian Veloso (Managing Director, SAP Concur Canada) led a wide-ranging discussion with special guests Aaron McMillan (Managing Director, Operations Policy & Support, United Airlines), Greg Owen (Associate Director, Toronto Pearson International Airport), and Amy Frankel (Employment Lawyer, Forte Law Corporation).
Not surprisingly, the panelists all cited traveller safety as the top concern of employers, employees, and service providers, such as airports and airlines.
Traveller safety also seemed to influence a poll conducted at the outset of the webcast, which found that 41% of participants expect to be travelling less into 2022 than they did pre-pandemic.
This said, Aaron McMillan and Greg Owen both spoke to how technology is already playing a key role in creating a safe, smooth travel experience as people return to the skies. New touchless systems and mobile apps are already in use at many major airports, including touchless baggage drop-off, virtual health document screening, and contactless customs screenings, plus pilot programs for e-gate boarding checks.
From an HR and legal perspective, Amy Frankel had more cautionary advice for Canadian businesses looking forward to the return of travel.
During the discussion, Amy highlighted the increased obligation on employers to stay up-to-date with, and adhere to, the continual changes in provincial and national public health requirements. She also emphasized the importance of putting in place new travel policies that clearly define what is and isn’t expected of employees traveling in a post-pandemic world.
To address these requirements, Amy recommends businesses bring together key team members from across the organization, including senior management, business unit directors, HR and legal representatives, and a health and safety officer.
She adds:
“Even if you’re a smaller business that doesn’t have a travel manager, it’s time to put a temporary one in place. You’ll need someone who can be the single point of contact for business travel processes, employee Duty of Care, and policy compliance.”
Ready to take a closer look at how you can use technology to gain increased visibility and control over your business travel and duty of care?