Business Travel Not Yet Affected by Ebola

Business travel has not been significantly impacted by the current Ebola outbreak, according to a poll of travel managers conducted by the GBTA Foundation, the education and research group of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA).

More than 90% of travel managers said domestic business travel has either not been impacted at all or has not been impacted much during the past month, according to the poll. And for international business travel, nearly 80% of managers said ebola hasn’t impacted travel at all or has not impacted it much.

In the U.S. a total of 421 corporate travel managers completed the online survey Oct.13 through Oct. 15.

“Although Ebola is top of mind across the country, its business as usual for most business travelers,” said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and chief operating officer. “But that is not to say that companies are not monitoring this outbreak closely. A majority of travel managers said they either are, or plan to provide, their employees with updated information on staying safe while traveling.”

According to McCormick, it is imperative that the government and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provide accurate and timely information to the public.

Although the majority of business domestic and international travelers aren’t changing their schedules, companies that do business in West Africa are making changes, according to the GBTA: 52% of travel managers who do business in West Africa said they are restricting travel to that part of the world.