I got upgraded numerous times over the years due to status and/or miles. But no company I have ever worked for has purchased a business/first ticket for me.
The OP doth protest a wee bit too much. The answer, as always is...if you don't like it, go work for a less "cruel" company.
And also notice whenever these discussions occur it's never "I think the company should pay for biz/first in order to make me more productive" arguments, it's always "I hate flying coach and my company is being mean" type arguments.
Yeah in some cases, when it's a matter of life and death (business speaking), you want the employee to get a good night's sleep on the flight. But for the vast majority of business travel, it's not worth the extra several thousand dollars when the employee can fly coach the day before and be as productive the following day, for a fraction of the cost, even when adding in an extra night's hotel and extra meals for a day.
Last edited by KoKoBuddy; Jan 21, 2015 at 3:15 pm