It was a mixed week in the travel industry, with a new study by Travel Leaders Group showing some positive signs for business travel, but the decline in China's stock market beginning to drag outbound travel growth from that country.
44 Percent of Business Travel Clients Use "Sharing Economy" Accommodations
Travel Leaders Group has released its latest survey data on fall trends in business travel. More than two-thirds of its participating corporate travel specialists indicated that over 10 percent of their clients are flying in the “front of the plane” (First or Business Class), which is an increase over last year. Additional findings looked at the emergence of the “sharing economy” within business travel; 44.4 percent have clients who have used an alternative supplier for accommodation and 66.2 percent indicated their clients have used an alternative supplier for their ground transportation. Nearly 81 percent of respondents also stated that their business travel bookings are higher than or on par with last year at this time.
“While we have seen some volatility in the economy since our survey was completed last month, in general our corporate clientele have expressed enough confidence in the marketplace to make continuing investments in business travel,” said Travel Leaders Group CEO Ninan Chacko. “This has clearly been a solid year for business travel through the first eight months as over 80 percent of our corporate travel specialists are seeing their business travel bookings better than or equal to the same time last year.”
China Travel Growth Falls to 1 Percent
In China, a report from ForwardKeys released this week indicated that air travel bookings from the country have slowed sharply over the past three months, especially to Europe and the U.S., closely mirroring a decline in the country’s stock market.
Total outbound international bookings from China fell from a growth of 21 percent year on year, to just 1 percent, since the Shanghai Composite hit its peak.
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Departures from China from September to December 2015 will still grow compared with the same period last year, the ForwardKeys analysis shows.
And travel during the upcoming Golden Week national holiday, from October 1 to 7, is hardly affected by the stock market drop because bookings were made months in advance.
Las Vegas Tops U.S. Cities for Fall Travel
This week also showed continued interest in where clients will be headed for the fall. CCRA Travel Solutions recently unveiled its latest booking data, both for the U.S. and abroad.
The data is based on travel agent bookings made through the CCRATravel.com hotel booking engine for fall arrivals between September 23 and December 21.
Based on CCRA’s year-over-year 2014/2015 hotel booking comparisons, the following two new cities appear on CCRA’s Top 10 U.S. Cities list for 2015 fall arrivals: Key West, FL and Nashville, TN. Additionally, the following three new cities appear on CCRA’s Top 10 International Cities list: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Rockhampton, Australia; and Montego Bay, Jamaica.
More than One in Three Have Had "Office Bully"
Finally, this week also shared some insights into how to keep an office running smoothly, particularly if that office has the misfortune to have an "office bully." According to research from staffing firm OfficeTeam, about one in three (35 percent) workers surveyed admitted they've had an office bully. More than one-quarter (27 percent) of human resources (HR) managers interviewed said they think workplace bullying happens at least somewhat often at their company.
When employees were asked how they responded to a bully, 32 percent stated they confronted the person. Another 27 percent told their manager, and 17 percent did nothing.
"Workplace bullying often flies under the radar because employees tolerate or fail to report it," said Robert Hosking, executive director of OfficeTeam. "Managers and staff alike should be supported in addressing bullying issues. This includes not giving anyone a pass for negative behavior, no matter how valued that person may be."
1. Take a stand. Avoid being an easy target. Bullies often back off if you show confidence and stick up for yourself.
2. Talk it out. Have a one-on-one discussion with the bully, providing examples of behaviors that made you feel uncomfortable. It's possible the person is unaware of how his or her actions are negatively affecting others.
3. Keep your cool. As tempting as it is to go tit-for-tat, don't stoop to the bully's level. Stay calm and professional.
4. Document poor conduct. Maintain a record of instances of workplace bullying, detailing what was said or done by the individual.
5. Seek support. If the issue is serious or you aren't able to resolve it on your own, alert your manager or HR department for assistance.
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