I think there is no real justification, it's just a perk. The "I'm so important I need to be rested" theory is a joke but makes people feel important. In over 200 intercontinental business class flights I've yet to sit next to someone who was so critical to their company's operations that a hint of tiredness could wreck the bottom line. Of course I'm not complaining as I'm lucky enough to get to fly J class on my company's dime. I don't delude myself, however, that it's due to my importance, it's just a good company to work for and a good perk!

I would take the $$$, but there are many things where corporations pay huge expenses for some reason but not so justifiable at a personal viewpoint.

Exactly. I think most people making less than $500k/yr would take the money. Heck, the NBA refs got in trouble for pocketing the difference between F and Y.

I think a big part of it is keeping important employees happy- I would be royally annoyed if I was told I'd be flying in Y several times a month accross the Atlantic or Pacific!

I know a company that used to have a 5 hour rule- Book coach unless total airtime was 5 hours or more, in which case they got J. They eventually realized how expensive this was (even the Y tickets were fully flexible), and made everyone fly within NA on cheap fares.

It should also be said that these last few years have been the best time to purchase business class with all the sales and Z fares. It's really not that much more than a normal Y ticket. I recently paid €1900 and €2000 for long haul business class tickets. I would have paid just over a thousand for coach. So nearly double the price, but not 3000 more.

And then there are RTW tickets. These are often quite difficult to get in coach, but usually easy in business class. And thus RTW-C's can be actually cheaper than buying a bunch of individual coach tickets.

And this will never get factored in, especially as a matter of business policy, but the Y experience is dramatically different (which is to say, more bearable) if you are 5'-4" instead of 6'-4"...

A business policy can come to be if the leader of the company is 5'4". All Cisco employees must travel in coach, even up to the VP level. Why? Because the 2nd CEO and former Chairman of the company, John Morgridge is a tiny fellow who always traveled in coach. Cisco has something like $50 billion in cash reserves, so they aren't exactly hurting financially.

Yet most of the Cisco VP level employees are quite wealthy in their own right, and often buy up to business class out of their own pockets. Or use SWU's of course.

Or higher
 

I know many people who make even more than $500,000/year who would take the money, also! :eek:

Better performance for one thing, and attractive perks to recruit and retain the best people they can. If they are sending me around the world to make them richer, they need to treat me well. Think of it as an investment.

Remember that price to you is a greater percentage of your worth than it is the company's.

Just because I never had an accident in 20 years of going 150mph on the Autobahn on a daily basis, I wouldn't recommend that everybody do it.

On a more serious note, it's great that you are wired to function the way you are.

As others have pointed out, it's a matter of many factors. I'm 6'4" and while I'll happily do the occasional longhaul trip in Y/Y+, I would definitely balk at being expected to do so every other week. If you want my knowledge on the ground in some remote location, you are inconveniencing me in my personal life because I will be gone from home for a number of days, with a day of travelling on each end. I'll be spending countless hours of personal time either commuting or working - for no extra compensation. The least you can do is show me your appreciation by getting me there and back comfortably.

Alternatively, I'll be happy to go in coach if I stay on the clock for every minute of personal time I'm not spending doing personal stuff. And trust me - in that case, the additional cost of a ticket in J will pay for itself pretty quickly.

In my opinion, it's a matter of give and take. You show me some leeway and I'll do the same - happily.

I would also factor in the time changes and jetlag ... I never seem to have a problem flying west even in eco. I don't do as well flying east especially when I have been in the other time zone for a week and my body has adapted to the time zone..... And I should include that I CAN sleep in eco.

A higher education institution I'm associated with has a J policy if flight is over x hours (I think 5). Unless invited as a speaker to a conference or something like that, travel expenses come out of one's own grant budget. Most colleagues opt to fly in Y, even on punishing schedules, since that money can be used to employ someone, or purchase equipment etc. Note that the money (or savings) do not affect one's personal income in any way.

I'm more ambivalent: often booked Y+ (e.g. on BA) when available, never J, unless upgrading myself with miles. Would love to justify flying J, but can't see myself doing it from my own budget any time too soon.

Running a lab is much like running a small business, except that one doesn't make any more money (necessarily) by having more grants, papers etc., nor does one get rewarded for not spending it all within the budget timeframe.

tb

I'm not saying I'm uniquely "wired," just that there are many, many people like me who are thrilled to have jobs that let us travel hundreds of thousands of miles in Y (and are willing to use an unpaid personal day beforehand and afterwards, if extra rest is needed). Given the reservoir of such talent out there in this economy, I'm surprised anyone can demand J/F travel from their employer. If they said "I can't do my job properly unless you send Beluga caviar to my office every day at noon," they'd be laughed out of the HR office, but somehow a $10,000 international J ticket (in place of a $1500 Y ticket) is considered reasonable.

In any case, it sounds like some companies realize that in fact the work gets done no matter what class the employees travel in (e.g. the Cisco example), otherwise the employees get replaced. Hopefully this will mean the end of the J "perk" sooner rather than later.

Expectations depend on sector too... I'm a manager of a non-profit association. For my office, about 1/2 of the revenue comes from foundation grants and 1/2 from member dues, conference revenue, and such. It is a tight budget. All travel is in economy, no matter how long the trip, level in the organization, or anything else. It is simply a matter of money. We're just happy to find the travel funds, using economy travel, to make those trips that are necessary.

See... I think this is where we differ. If your talents are somewhat unique and you add actual value to your employer's bottom line in a way that somebody they bring in off the streets doesn't, you're in a completely different position.

I've never once had to demand anything in regards to travel. My employers and clients have always offered J or F, no questions asked.

Maybe it's different in the US but in Germany, there is a very limited pool of qualified people and hence companies over here do a lot to keep their talents happy.

Try to look at is this way: Your employer sends you out in order to make money or save money. It's only fair he look after you then. If it weren't important to him, he would not be sending you.