“Bleisure”, a blend of business and leisure travel, is a rapidly growing trend in the workforce. Businesses and employees alike require clear guidelines and policy outlines to mitigate any potential issues in balancing responsibilities, insurance matters, and liability shifts.

A successful example of this trend is witnessed in the case of Melinda Buchmann – a manager at the Florida-based company, RevShoppe. Buchmann demonstrated the potential of this trend by combining a work-related conference with a holiday involving her husband, who also works at the same firm.

This idea of merging work and personal travel has gained popularity with the rise of a flexible and remote workforce. Initially brought about by the tech industry and new businesses, it has now saturated multiple sectors, proving to be advantageous for both employee well-being and overall job performance. Allied Market Research predicts, the market for “bleisure” travel will surge from $315.3 billion in 2022 to an impressive $731.4 billion in 2032.

Despite these benefits, the “bleisure” trend has given rise to certain complexities.

Balancing ‘bleisure’ travel: guidelines and responsibilities

Companies face the challenge of understanding their legal obligations, known as “duty of care”, to their employees during such combined trips. Businesses must provide adequate medical support during emergencies or illnesses, ensure replacement of damaged rental vehicles, and also provide support in dealing with potential security threats.

There are ongoing debates whether these provisions should extend into the leisure portion of such trips. It’s clear that both businesses and employees require explicit understanding and defined guidelines, preferably in written form, to navigate the specifics of “bleisure” travel. The creation of these policies should also consider factors like nature of work, length and destination of trips to ensure balance and fairness.

Clear demarcation between corporate responsibilities and employee rights is crucial for a harmonious integration of work and leisure journeys. A meticulously scrutinized framework can prevent confusion or mishandling of situations, protecting employee rights and marking out corporate obligations in an unequivocal manner.

Therefore, this exponentially growing trend of combining work and personal travel, or “bleisure”, needs a carefully planned, well-defined structure to ensure the best outcome for both companies and employees alike.