New controversial work travel policy

[jakeseven7]

Hi all

Hoping to pick the groups brains on this, particularly for those who work for large organisations and MNCs (edit: multi national corps).

So our travel policy is fine, it’s pretty decent, we don’t fly LCC, we get great rates at good hotels, great airfares on full service airlines and apart from the odd hiccup works quite well.

We are a part of a very large MNC, and next year they are holding a big company meeting in SE Asia. To save money on costs they are proposing employees share rooms as a ‘one off’ for this big meeting. It won’t be an ongoing thing.

Our local and global business doesn’t have a HR policy that either supports or rules out sharing rooms. However it’s never been done before in this region with our team.

Our local HR BP ‘strongly advises’ against it, but will be overruled because well HR has no legs in MNCs anymore and always gets rolled in leadership meetings on everything…

Our local team are going to be up in arms when they hear this plan… and we are working through how to try and manage it…

Personally, I’ve never worked in a company where this was actually an allowed practice (my background is other MNCs where it was strictly 1 person per room, for obvious reasons…)

I’d be really keen to hear from other members who work for large businesses, sharing on their rooming polices and if indeed they do have share room, what conditions and EHS safety protocols are in place, options given (?), how is it communicated, how are gender diverse people accommodated for etc?

Speaking to all my mates in big companies, no large companies seem to do this anymore so I’m a bit stuck… and honestly our HR team are underpowered and not greatly enabled…

 

[RooFlyer]

All sounds a bit precious to me. Sharing hotel rooms is certainly not uncommon in company travel. I don’t prefer it, but it’s not an unreasonable thing to be required and happened to me many times in the past with national companies and smaller ones. Assume gender segregation.

What exactly is the concern about same gender sharing rooms?

 

[exceladdict]

The specific type of hotel room will play a factor here too. Often, there's not much privacy to be had. A "quest" style two bedroom apartment might be a slightly different story (I have had to share that style with same gender but unfamiliar colleagues once or twice).

A family member who works for an American based corporation with a large Australian footprint often has to share a twin hotel room at their annual conferences though.

Honestly I'm with you, would not be pleased, a quiet, pleasant room is one of the small niceties in corporate travel

 

[Denali]

We once had a conference and they tried to have us shared rooms and I refused to go unless it was separate rooms so some people had suites with 2 or 3 bedrooms with their own ensuite but the most had separate rooms.

Im with you. Coworkers should not be sharing rooms - we need our personal space and time outs. We need to be able to shower and poop without your coworker hearing everything.

 

[jakeseven7]

The specific type of hotel room will play a factor here too. Often, there's not much privacy to be had. A "quest" style two bedroom apartment might be a slightly different story (I have had to share that style with same gender but unfamiliar colleagues once or twice).

A family member who works for an American based corporation with a large Australian footprint often has to share a twin hotel room at their annual conferences though.

Honestly I'm with you, would not be pleased, a quiet, pleasant room is one of the small niceties in corporate travel

Thanks for your constructive contribution

Good questions;

Hotel room is not a suite/apartment style. It’s your typical double room (2 beds same room, next to each other, shared bathroom)…

 

[esquire]

2 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment styles rooms are usually ok if both parties agree (and know each other well) but otherwise a big NO from our company policy. The way our Australian part of the business has positioned this was 'our budget our rules', and recently as there is so much focus on worker pyschosocial health and wellbeing it is not worth exposing the organisation to such risk.

 

[Pushka]

Maybe they can consider cheaper style hotel accommodation to allow for single person occupancy?

 

[Guvner]

Ask to share with the CEO or a Board member.

 

[Flyfrequently]

Maybe they can consider cheaper style hotel accommodation to allow for single person occupancy?

Good point @Pushka

When working for a small business that was very focused on the cost of sending employees to events, due to a medical consideration of mine, I paid the $ difference when it was proposed that I was required to share for a weekend conference in SA.
That worked once only, next time around, I declined the opportunity to attend, but understand this is often not an option.

Keep us posted on the outcome @jakeseven7

 

[RooFlyer]

Maybe they can consider cheaper style hotel accommodation to allow for single person occupancy?

You mean something like Accor Pullman?

 

[Pushka]

You mean something like Accor Pullman?

You mean, like somewhere where we'd stay?

 

[kookaburra75]

For a couple of UK and US companies I've worked for, at the one-off special events we shared rooms - although I got an exemption as I was then a heavy snorer and didn't want to get smothered by my roommate in the middle of the night. We had an annual "kick off" in the UK to start the new UK financial year, and that was generally at old manor houses etc, so there wasn't a lot of bedrooms anyway. Everyone was ok with that - I suppose it was treated as a few days away from home.

For normal business travel, it was one person per room. We often used two-bedroom apartments for two, but it was also optional, not mandatory. The downside was all flights were in Y, unless over five hours, you could get PE.

How to break it to your team? I suppose the only way you can plan it, is look to the Australian laws and policies, as that is what you are bound by as the employer, even if the people will be in another country. People will have to be given the option not to attend if they don't want to abide by the room-sharing position.

 

[Fergo747]

I've only had to share a room once when travelling for work. Very similar type situation and I was quite junior at the time so wasn't going to stick my neck out given others more senior than me had accepted it. Luckily it was only two nights.

In saying that, if this was to happen right now, I would be saying a flat no based on the configuration proposed (i.e. two beds in a single room). I would only consider accepting sharing a room if it was either a two bed or (and this is only a maybe) a one bed room with a separate bedroom with another bed in the lounge - provided I knew and liked the other person.

To those saying that it's being a bit precious, I think that's a little unfair. It's not clear whether the OPs 'roommate' would be someone they know or completely random. If completely random then not really that different to getting someone off the street to share with.

 

[RooFlyer]

You mean, like somewhere where we'd stay?

Only under extreme conditions.

More seriously - I had one very similar case. Working for Bankers Trust investment bank; whole team went to LA to conference with American cousins. Shared rooms ( gender segregation). Wasn't a preferred thing, but we simply choose a mate/ friend to share with. Bosses got their own rooms. Some pretty big egos there, but it was "whatever - just show me the bonus" .

As another example, international cricketers and Olympic athletes always share rooms.

I'm not sure what the "obvious reason" would be in the OP for always separate rooms in MNC - but it doesn't sound very savoury.

 

[VPS]

I'm with @Denali I would refuse to go if I had to share a room or if I really wanted to go stump up for my own room. I'm a poor sleeper and need my privacy

 

[Hvr]

Not happening. A room by myself or I'm not going. Only once on business travel did I ever have to share, there were exigent circumstances that meant there was no other options.

 

[Lynda2475]

Only time I have ever come across this was working for an international consultancy in the 90s, when sending grads to interstate training they would make them share a room with another grad of same gender (but never applied to higher ups). Same company would also often rent multi bedroom apartments when staff where sent to do on-site jobs in Darwin and again colleagues below M1 had to share apartment not a room with same gender.

Never saw it since, and am not a fan.

IME usually policy gives own room, but asks you to share cab/uber for commuting from hotel to client site or event. Also usually limits hotel choice based on preferred properties and max per night pricing.

Wrt flights, anything under 8 hours was whY.

 

[dajop]

I have worked for 3 MNCs - and during time at my current company and one of the previous ones I have attended several meetings/conferences where required to share 2x QB hotel rooms with someone else. In the other MNC - we only ever had smaller functional get togethers and this was always in our own rooms.

I hate this approach, particularly as certain levels seemed to be exempt and furthermore it always seemed to be at places like Shangri-La and JW Marriott, why not less expensive properties? TBH some of it I suspected was related to capacity and having everyone in the same hotel/resort rather than being separated. One, just one, was in 2BR apartments. That was much better.

But no policies prevented this and in fact across Asia seems very common - even on regular business trips - where colleagues share rooms. Mainly us westerners who don’t like it - or at least are vocal that we don’t.

 

[jakeseven7]

Maybe they can consider cheaper style hotel accommodation to allow for single person occupancy?

Good idea. The regional team however want everyone in same hotel, hotel is already locked and loaded…. We don’t have influence over that part of the decision.

Ask to share with the CEO or a Board member.

So, we laugh, but I guarantee the regional CEO will not be sharing, along with some other senior leaders… which is also a great communication point to try and manage, sigh….

 

[jakeseven7]

It's not clear whether the OPs 'roommate' would be someone they know or completely random. If completely random then not really that different to getting someone off the street to share with.

Thanks for the constructive commentary.

So what we’ve been told is that you can indicate a preference but unassigned people will be matched with randoms.