Today on International Women’s Day (8 March), a new survey sheds light on the experiences of women business travellers and reveals the proactive measures they take to enhance their safety and well-being while travelling for work.
The Opinium* survey of 500 Australian business travellers, commissioned by leading travel risk management and assistance provider World Travel Protection, reveals 88% of women business travellers take safety precautions to enhance their security when travelling alone.
The most common safety precautions include informing family or work of their whereabouts (39%), avoiding after-hours events or gatherings (25%), placing obstacles against the hotel door to deter intruders (14%), while some women (10%) report carrying a weapon of some sort like pepper spray or keys.
Kate Fitzpatrick, Regional Security Director, EMEA at World Travel Protection, says it’s important to acknowledge that women often face more harassment and discrimination than men while travelling.
The survey reveals 63% of respondents feel that travelling as a woman is less safe than travelling as a man. And more women (44%) express concern about the risk of sexual assault than men (29%).
Fitzpatrick says: “When making plans for travellers who identify as women, it’s important to think about the social rules and safety of the destination they’re visiting. This includes how they will get around safely and any political problems.
“Factors such as cultural norms, gender-based discrimination and safety concerns can significantly impact women’s experiences while travelling.”
Around International Women’s Day, it is important to note that global women’s equality issues remain a concern, with 29% of women feeling uncomfortable travelling to countries where women’s rights are not protected.
Fitzpatrick says it’s encouraging to see 58% of women agree that their employer expresses concern about their well-being and takes steps to ensure their safety while travelling.
“This entails arranging timely flights, avoiding late-night airport-to-hotel journeys, and equipping all business travellers with a travel assistance app to share their location with the employer’s risk management provider and receive crucial alerts.
“World Travel Protection educates and trains businesses to mitigate exposure to inherent risks associated with travelling abroad. This covers all staff and can include solo-women-specific training. Along with training prior to departure, we provide medical, travel and security emergency assistance 24/7 to support travellers on their trip should an incident occur.”
*Opinium online survey conducted from 1 February to 8 February 2024 with 2,000 people who travel for business at least once a year in UK, Australia, US and Canada (500 respondents in each region).
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