Almost a third (31.4%) of female business travellers have encountered sexual harassment while travelling, according to a Maiden-Voyage report. Handbag theft is the second most frequent incident, followed by drink spiking and sexual assault. Furthermore, 79.2% of female business travellers claim they are under-prepared to deal with the incidents they encounter.
These are just some of the findings from a new report looking at female business travellers’ needs, the degree to which these needs are met, and whether gender should play any part in corporate travel management.
The Women in Business Travel Report was commissioned by Maiden-Voyage, the world’s specialist resource for female business travellers, from Travel Intelligence Network, specialists in creating unique content for the travel and hospitality sectors.
Unique research carried out for the Women in Business Travel Report also revealed that:
• 77% of female business travellers say their company’s travel programmes should take account of their specific gender needs.
• 70.02% say travel providers need to try harder to address those needs.
• 73.4% say their experiences of travel providers affects their policy compliance.
• 75.3% say their companies should prioritise suppliers who pay special attention to the needs of female travellers.
Those surveyed came come from a wide variety of industry sectors including professional services, healthcare, technology, retail, education and government. Just under half of the 200+ respondents spend four nights or more per month away from their UK homes on business.
The research, among female company managers, directors, chief executives and owners, was supported by leading travel brands Avis Budget, CTI, International SOS, Priority Pass, and Virgin Trains.
Today, 47% of women who travel, travel on business and 80% of travel spend is managed by women. Women are the fastest growing segment of business travellers. Duty of Care legislation has demanded that employers take a more personal approach to business travel, and travel suppliers have reacted similarly.
“We live in a risk-filled world where corporates must remain ever-mindful of their duty of care to travelling employees” said Carolyn Pearson, Founder and Chief Executive, Maiden-Voyage.com. “More women are in senior corporate positions, and more are travelling on business too, often alone. Travel management has changed too. Personalising the traveller experience is essential to maintain the policy compliance that drives maximum value from corporates’ travel spend, so travel managers are engaging with a more diverse range of stakeholders than ever before in a bid to create travel programmes that meet the personal needs of every business traveller. But, as our report shows, there is still much work to be done.”
Copies of the Women in Business Travel Report can be downloaded, free of charge, from www.maiden-voyage.com
