Duty of Care

for International
Travelers and
Expatriate Employees
A guide to fulfilling legal obligations
and mitigating human, reputational,
financial and operational impacts.

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Table of Contents

Section One — Duty of Care Overview 3

What is Duty of Care and why does it matter? 4

The legal context 5
Financial impact vs. benefits 6

Section Two — Approaching Duty of Care for Your Organization 7

The main priorities 8

A cross-functional approach 8
Combining knowledge and experience 9
Weighing risk 9
Decision-making: framework and evidence 9
Threats to travelers 10
Putting theory into practice 11
Empowering travelers 11
Employee locating and communication tools 11
Are your business travelers protected? 12
Expectations and limitations 13
Summary 13

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Section One
—
Duty of Care
Overview

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

What is Duty of Care and why does it matter?

Organizations have a moral and legal obligation to ensure the safety of their employees.
Regardless of whether employees are in an office, working from home or traveling for business,
it is essential to have the policies, procedures and systems in place to fulfill Duty of Care.

Without these systems in place, organizations and their people
are potentially at risk. This makes it vital for organizations to
understand the scope of their obligations.
Duty of Care goes beyond having travel insurance, or getting
travelers home safely after an earthquake, terror attack or some
other worst-case scenario—it extends into any and all challenges
that could affect an employee’s well-being each day.
Why does Duty of Care matter?
Demonstrating concern for employee well-being shouldn’t be
seen solely as a legal obligation—there’s a strong business case
too. Actively reassuring employees that they are supported can
help boost both mental and physical health, improving productivity
and engagement across the organization.
This in turn can encourage employee loyalty, attract top talent
and improve retention, which can lead to long-term productivity
improvements and results. Likewise, providing employees with
support when they travel for business can reassure them and
help to minimize stress, mitigate risks and ultimately improve
the results of a trip.
It’s important to note that employees also have a responsibility
to ensure their own well-being at work and are entitled to refuse
tasks or requests that aren’t safe without fear of disciplinary
action. This puts the impetus on organizations to ensure protective
systems are in place. If tasks are unsafe and employees refuse
to do them, it can impact operations and profits.
Employment laws aside, the business case for Duty of Care is
strong and wide-reaching. It affects every part of an organization
and the financial, reputational, legal and operational impacts
of failure can be severe and irreparable.

At the most basic level, you can fulfill the majority of your legal
Duty of Care obligations by:

Providing a Completing Providing Protecting Ensuring Maintaining

safe work risk assessments any necessary employees from employees open lines of
environment for job roles training harassment, don’t work communication
and facilities bullying and excessive to hear employee
discrimination hours concerns

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees
The legal context
Legislative developments and changing
attitudes to corporate responsibility have
had a big impact on the way organizations
view and manage their exposure to risks.
Legislation has evolved to take account of growing complexity
in the world of work, including greater mobility, opportunities
for international travel and an increasingly global marketplace.
While the human implications of death or injury are all too apparent,
the liability implications in terms of director and manager culpability
are also potentially life-changing. Six- or seven-figure fines are
becoming the norm in serious Duty of Care litigations, with criminal
charges resulting in a prison term if senior personnel are deemed
to have been negligent or are unable to demonstrate that they
have taken reasonable precautions.
It’s worth noting that Duty of Care obligations and liability apply
equally to home country or overseas activities. However, the
likelihood of an incident occurring is multiplied when international
travel is involved, especially where the organization has minimal
or no in-country presence. With this in mind, it’s hardly surprising
that travel risk management is receiving so much discussion and
debate in the boardroom.
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Duty of Care and business travel
Does Duty of Care cover business travel?
This is the question at the heart of the landmark 2015
case of Dusek v. StormHarbour Securities LLP,
in which a fatal accidents claim was brought against
the late Mr. Dusek’s employer by his widow and child.
Mr. Dusek was killed while traveling by helicopter to
a project site in the Andes mountains of Peru. This was
in the course of his employment and so it was within
StormHarbour’s Duty of Care to take all reasonable
steps not to expose him to unnecessary risk.
The court found that:
—  lying at high altitude, in bad weather
F
and in a remote region of the Andes
is inherently dangerous.
—  tormHarbour failed to make any safety
S
inquiries and failed to carry out a risk
assessment for the trip.
—  ad the necessary risk assessment been
H
carried out, the journey would have been
deemed too dangerous and Mr. Dusek would
not have been asked to travel to the site.
StormHarbour breached their Duty of Care to Mr. Dusek
and were found to be responsible for his death.
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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Financial impact vs. benefits

While fulfilling Duty of Care will have financial implications, the cost of investing in Duty of Care
is significantly outweighed by the costs of failure, which go beyond mere profits and can have
long-lasting effects on an organization and how it is perceived.

The graphic below breaks down the financial impact versus the benefits of fulfilling Duty of Care:

Impacts Benefit Cost of failure Business mitigation cost

Employees Ensure well-being Injuries, mental and physical Compliance + training

Improve mental and distress, loss of earnings or Implementing effective risk
physical health even loss of life management plans
Improve morale, Medical expenses Security risk management
loyalty and productivity Decline in morale, technology
Attract and retain loyalty and productivity
top talent Loss of experienced
employees
Recruiting and onboarding
new employees
Sick pay
Risk management expenses
(e.g. evacuation)

Operations Maintain operational More downtime and Insurance

continuity operational interruptions Implementing effective risk
Decline in profitability management plans
Diversion of resources
and personnel

Organization Improve reputation Damage to public perception Insurance

Improve public perception Reputation damage Implementing effective risk
Risk management-driven Falling investor confidence management plans
insurance discounts Increased insurance premiums Security risk management
technology
Loss of stakeholder bonuses
Fines, penalties, litigation
and liability damages
Stakeholder Incarceration
Bankruptcy

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Section Two
—
Approaching
Duty of Care
for Your
Organization

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

The main priorities

Whether responding to a A cross-functional approach

major crisis or planning a For corporate, academic, institutional and NGO sector
organizations, the top priority is—or should be—the safety

routine overseas trip, effective and security of personnel. Protecting life and limb, and the
well-being of personnel in the office and abroad, often features

Duty of Care requires a prominently in strategic reviews and vision statements.

range of integrated policies, Duty of Care does not exist in a silo. It spans multiple parts of
the organization and requires processes and systems that link

processes and relationships. functions such as operations, security, risk management, travel,
HR, legal, and insurance.

You not only have to do the Given the number of people and departments that necessarily
become involved with Duty of Care, the ownership of risk
right thing—you have to be management tools within organizations can sometimes
become blurred, resulting in tools that are not used to their
seen as doing the right thing, maximum potential.

and there are serious legal and Duty of Care is most effectively provided when ownership
and roles are clearly defined, and when communication between
financial implications if you don’t. departments is adequate.

The five pillars of Duty of Care

As a simple guide, when weighing up Duty of Care,
there are five main pillars that organizations need to consider:

1 2 3 4 5
— — — — —
Ensuring the risk Ensuring employees Ensuring systems Ensuring there Ensuring
versus reward of are appropriately are in place to alert are mechanisms organizations have
any business activity prepared before the organization in place to inform the means in place
has been assessed they undertake to events ASAP organizations to communicate
in advance business tasks so that employees exactly where their with their employees
that require travel can be alerted if employees are instantly
they are potentially at any given time
at risk

By meeting these five fundamental requirements, organizations will be

on the right track to ensuring that their Duty of Care obligations are met.

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

The main priorities

Combining knowledge and experience Weighing risk

There are several internal issues that can make responding In recent years, political evacuations and high-profile kidnap-for-
to an incident more challenging than it should be: ransom cases have featured prominently in the headlines. As a
result, they also appear on many security risk registers. They pose
—  he function coordinating a crisis response is unaware
T major Duty of Care challenges and are increasingly covered by
of the extent of response provisions the organization special insurance policies and crisis management protocols.
can draw upon
However, these events are rather unlikely for most organizations.
—  mployee locating systems do not give the complete
E In the majority of countries worldwide, road traffic accidents
picture of their whereabouts and exposure to criminal activity pose the highest threats to
personal safety. Moving an individual or small group of travelers
—  mergency messaging systems upon which response
E
between airports, hotels, meeting locations, social events and
processes are built are not designed to take account
remote worksite locations under relatively normal operating
of external damage to infrastructure
conditions in countries and cities of “moderate risk” can be
—  lanning and coordination have been neglected
P a hazardous business.
or untested
While not as dramatic as kidnap-for-ransom scenarios,
Organizations seeking Duty of Care support wish to minimize the routine movement of international travelers presents
the likelihood of harm coming to an employee, contractor organizations with significant Duty of Care challenges.
or staff member under their direct or implied responsibility.
But very few have a perfect global strategy, despite having Decision-making: framework and evidence
Duty of Care processes and mechanisms in place.
Establishing travel risk management policies and processes
Ensuring organizations and their service providers are fully to govern the diverse and dynamic travel requirements of
prepared to react and take action when a Duty of Care international organizations is a huge challenge. Once in place,
emergency arises requires rigorous planning and multiple these policies and processes must be subject to continuous
scenario enactments. review of risk, reward and financial impact. This process should
be documented and supported by justifications as to how travel
Duty of Care is not a one-off exercise or a box to be ticked. approval was granted.
Creating a policy is not enough—Duty of Care development
is an ongoing learning and implementation process. In fact, 77% of businesses are not confident they can locate
Regardless of size or scale, organizations working with employees in an emergency.
Crisis24 are continuously looking for ways to enhance
the resilience and consistency of the systems and
processes they rely on to safeguard their people worldwide.

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Threats to travelers

Man-made Terrorism Crime War Infrastructural Cultural Vehicular

incl. piracy and incl. theft, threats, incl. civil unrest, incl. damaged incl. can’t incl. road
kidnapping opportunistic, coups and roads, poor-quality speak the accidents,
organized and insurgencies buildings, poor air local language, hijackings and
violent crime quality and fires prejudice and calamities
preconceptions

Natural Disasters Extreme weather Diseases Pandemics Infections

incl. earthquakes, incl. hurricanes, incl. influenza, incl. swine flu, incl. malaria,
volcanic eruptions tsunamis, floods, cholera, bird flu, SARS, typhoid,
and landslides droughts and tuberculosis and Zika dengue fever
snowstorms and AIDS and hepatitis

Employee Administrative Everyday Mental health

incl. lack of/wrong incl. canceled flights, incl. stress,
visa, immigration lost luggage and overwork
challenges/fines forgotten/expired and isolation
passport

Some of the questions to ask before travel is approved or From a Duty of Care perspective, key issues that need to be
undertaken: demonstrated and supported with evidence include:

— Is the trip to an elevated risk/unfamiliar — How was the decision made?
location really necessary?
— Who made the decision?
— Do the benefits outweigh the risks?
— Based on what criteria?
—  hat would the ideal risk management
W
solution look like? — In accordance with which policy?

— How much of this is feasible within budget? — Subject to which mitigation measures?

—  ow well equipped are we to deal with

H The evidence needs to cover these elements as the bare
an incident? minimum to prove reasonable steps have been taken to
demonstrate Duty of Care.
—  hat is the potential impact of our
W
worst-case scenario? Decisions over the level of travel security support could face
major scrutiny in the event of any incident. For example, letting
travelers choose a taxi instead of providing a private driver or
security escort will be questioned in the event of a road traffic
accident or criminal scam.

Demonstrating how Duty of Care was an organizational priority

will be a focus. Did financial considerations influence risk
management standards? If so, cutting corners can be very
costly in the long run.

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Threats to travelers

Putting theory into practice
It is one thing for an organization to develop a policy and
implement it with a supporting combination of internal processes,
insurance/assistance coverage and external providers. It’s another
to ensure these measures are genuinely effective.
Whether they have full, partial or peripheral responsibility
for Duty of Care programs, all concerned must have an
in-depth understanding of some key issues:
Organizations are often all too happy to invest time in training
employees on expense reporting and travel spend policies but
leave out health and safety. Taking a proactive approach to traveler
well-being provides clear evidence of Duty of Care processes
in action. The training and systems put in place will demonstrate
the thought and effort that have gone into pre-empting and
avoiding risky situations.
Employee locating and communication tools

—  hat insurance and assistance coverage do we have

W Tracking employees brings its own challenges. Much like a
in place across the organization? What does this entitle tachograph might be seen as a “spy in the cab,” tracking can
us to, and do we understand all the benefits? raise concerns over privacy. In some parts of Europe, for example,
union action has led to tracking restrictions.
—  ho are the ultimate service providers,
W
and do our systems link with theirs to Yet the ability to locate and communicate with personnel in the
keep everyone in sync and up to date event of an incident is critical for an effective response. Such a
on current risks? platform forms the core for a number of other tools and processes,
all with the ultimate objective of ensuring the safety and security
—  hat is the track record of these providers,
W of personnel worldwide. It’s also essential in demonstrating that
and can we trust them with our people’s safety? reasonable measures have been taken.

—  o our employees know what provision

D It’s a balancing act: employers need to meet their Duty of Care
is in place and how to access it? obligations while respecting their employees’ right to privacy.

—  re our internal communications up to

A
the mark on all relevant policies and coverage?

Empowering travelers

Response-based programs and policies focus on offering

support in the event of an incident. In other words, they
react to an event that has already occurred. Truly effective
Duty of Care provision requires proactive engagement and a
broader approach to Duty of Care and travel risk management.

Proactive measures aimed at better preparing international

travelers focus on making it less likely that they will experience
security and safety incidents. Improving people’s awareness
and behavior can be an effective way to help keep them safe.

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Are your business travelers protected?

We’ve found that there

Do we have a travel risk policy in place?
are several key questions
to ask to ensure the
well-being of travelers Does it cater to different levels
of employee seniority?
and to fulfill Duty of Care:
Do we have a travel risk management
program in place?

Does it focus on both international

and domestic travel?

Do we educate travelers about potential

risks ahead of a business trip?

Do we assess risk at every stage

of the journey?

Do we keep a record of safety advice

given to travelers?

Do we use learnings to improve

our resilience?

Do we have crisis response plans?

Do we regularly review and test

our travel risk program?

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Duty of Care for International
Travelers and Expatriate Employees

Threats to travelers

Expectations and limitations Summary

Even with the best plans and protocols, it simply isn’t possible It should be a priority for organizations to be able to fully
to achieve a 100% guarantee that no harm will ever come demonstrate that they’ve taken reasonable steps to protect
to someone in an organization’s remit. Duty of Care obligations their personnel. This Duty of Care applies equally to the safety
are not based on this expectation. and security of business travelers, expatriates and employees
on home soil. Although risks may be higher in certain regions,
In case of exceptional circumstances or where a single point the unexpected can happen anywhere, at any time, at home
of failure is unavoidable, it’s inevitable that some plans will have or abroad.
to be reworked in real time.
The importance of Duty of Care in the workplace is on the
Some examples include: rise, with growing awareness around regulations and legislation.
Yet business travelers and expatriate employees are often
— Embassies closing due to unspecified threats
still neglected, falling through the cracks despite potentially
—  arthquakes destroying infrastructure
E increased risks.
and disabling communications
Travel risk management plans and processes should form an
—  olcanic activity closing airspace across
V integral part of Duty of Care, forming a clear and established
a whole region framework of ownership, responsibility and communication.
Finally, they should also be subject to a specialist risk review
—  oad routes blocked by protesters,
R to ensure they are proportionate to the specific threat,
militants or the armed forces vulnerability and risk profile.

Duty of Care evaluations following such cases will focus on

the reasonableness of all the measures taken and how these
were adapted under extreme circumstances. Effective processes
and established communication flows between all parties are
particularly critical in these instances.

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