Expectation that colleagues should share a hotel room?

[CGaus]

Just that really, AIBU to think that professionals on business trips should not be expected to share hotel rooms to cut costs?

For context, I am a professional in the public sector. I live in Australia, and work in a large government department. It is not an entry level position, and both colleagues are female. The business trip is to carry out essential work (not optional training) and we would be staying in a hotel for just one night. We will be driving for several hours interstate to a regional town.

The colleague I’ve been asked to share with is lovely, but I haven’t known her very long and don’t feel comfortable sharing a room with her. A senior manager booked the room for both of us, I only realised he requested funding approval for one twin share room when I saw the email.

Thankfully I noticed this before we left, and was able to have a quick chat with my direct manager. I compromised by booking a family suite, so a small lounge area with two connecting but separate bedrooms and a shared bathroom at a small additional cost. My manager had not made the booking herself, and approved of the additional cost without hesitation.

We had to share for a charity I worked for. It was to save money. Luckily we were all close so I didn't mind!!!

Now I'd not do it.

We only had to once and it was for a 'reward' trip away, we didn't have to go and we were given the choice up front. On all standard business trips it wasn't expected of anyone . However I was the only female member of staff that usually travelled.

I've heard the England players have to share rooms during the world cup.

My ex husband had a boss who employed a woman as a PA solely because he fancied her, and at the interview told her that she would need to go on a trip away with him to see the products they made in situ. (There were places with their product within 10 miles, also) She agreed, then he told her that unfortunately, as they were a small company, they would have to share a room.... AND SHE AGREED!

My DH works away often, when abroad he has his own room, in the UK he often has to share and he farts/snores so bad that it's those he shates with I have pity for!

This is very unprofessional.

No-one should be expected to share a room with a colleague, unless there is a shortage of rooms in the place where they are going.

It wouldn't be expected by my employer (public sector) were likely to get a premier Inn, bit anything swanky but a private double room is the norm. I've had free upgrades in hotels I've stayed in a lot. Who knew holiday Inn had suites?! Once I got a room with a single bed and a profuse apology, a new admin got confused between a single room/a room for a single person, I wasn't too bothered anyway but other colleagues were more so.

YANBU

I’ve had to do this at conferences, including sharing a double bed with a female colleague. I hate it! It hasn’t come up for a few years now but I think I’d refuse.

I've had to share on school trips. With DofE I don't mind at all (up to eight of us in a bunk room) because we're all friends and it's part of the trip. Also, because we remotely supervise pupils, we haven't spent the whole day surrounded by kids so although it's an exhausting trip, there is at least some mental downtime.

That said, I've put my foot down and demanded my own room on residential trips abroad before. As PPs have said, it's really important to have some downtime, especially if you've been with colleagues (and pupils!) all day.

We are expected to share. Private sector.

I've shared once and I hated it. We usually get our own rooms but someone had to stay last minute and the hotel was full so they bunked in with me.

I went to the hotel toilets downstairs for my morning.. business. She spent ages in the bloody bath!

I think if people are happy to share, then great. A couple of my workmates always share as it means they can have nicer hotels. I've been known to share an apartment with one close workmate, we always make sure there's two bathrooms and two bedrooms so we have our own space.

I would point blank refuse, and if necessary pay the extra to get my own room. If I'm working, I need a private space to switch off/sleep/pump breastmilk. It's completely different to crashing at a friend's/going camping where you don't have to be in Work Mode and "on".

I've never been asked to share for work - my office asks people to share bedrooms after the Christmas party but I've always refused and stated my willingness to pay the extra for my own room. Even when I was doing a workshop on a campsite where the delegates were three to a 3-bed caravan, I got my own caravan (I was the facilitator and had work-related reasons for needing it, just to be clear).

I've only ever shared with DH once on a work trip (we both worked for the same organisation). Other than that, no way! I'd find it so uncomfortable.

To be fair we have an expense account for our breakfast, lunch and dinner, and we are being paid quite a lot in overtime as well as additional pay just for the inconvenience of being away from home. It’s the expectation of sharing that annoyed me.

Someone I know went away, had to share AND it was a room with a glass shower cubicle in the same space! I saw the photos, one of those achingly trendy places.

They had to set up a rota to allow each other to bathe and get dressed in peace!

Eurgh. I struggle to share a room with my husband.

Imagine having to do a poo in the morning with a colleague outside in the room?! I just couldn't. I can barely wee if someone can hear me.

I've shared once in all my working life, and that was when I was quite junior, at a conference in some venue that only had twin rooms I think.

I've been fortunate in that I've been the only woman in the team so obv the option to share isn't there, though there was the time we all checked in, found there had been a mix up with the rooms and they offered 3 of us (me and 2 men) a family suite! We declined.

I've shared AirBnBs with colleagues and that's been really nice actually.

I’m not trying to imply that I should be entitled to a private room because of my position. However I do think it might a difference to some extent if the nature of the travel was optional (additional training not required by the employer) or if the staff were entry level. I say this because in my Department, entry level staff are never required to travel. So if a lower level staff members asked to come for the purpose of career advancement or to gain experience and permission was granted they would need to be fully supervised by more senior employees and be in a “secondary” role. This would mean that they are learning and watching, maybe taking some notes but not carrying out any real work whilst still being paid significantly higher wages than they would usually receive.

If we assume sharing rooms ultimately user fewer resources, then it's interesting to try and square replies on this thread with the recent thread about trying to reduce our environmental impact ....

Nothing useful to help the OP, but it does help people understand why little measures are doomed to fail ... and this is AIBU

Our travel policy provides people with their own rooms by default.

Occasionally academics working with limited research funds will opt to share so they can maximise their budget for other things - but there is never an expectation of sharing.

In my previous company, I was responsible for booking accommodation for the workmen nearby sites. The budget was punitively small - £30pp pn. Oop north though, you could often get a B&B twin room for £60.

It was a ridiculous policy in more ways than one though, because it took me so long to find these places, and so long for the workmen to get to site from them than the cost saving would have been minimal in the end.

Seniority does legitimately have a role in travel policy and provisions at some companies. A senior person will 1) often have more travel to do; 2) will be valued principally for the high level complex decision-making which will be most impaired by being tired. And of course they are much more expensive and harder to replace if they leave or get sick, so it makes financial sense to reduce the nonessential stress on them. Plus they are more likely to have a schedule so tight that they do a full day at work, fly a red-eye, then have a full day of meetings on arrival, in which case you need to pay for a business class flight or they'll be nonfunctional and you might as well write the whole trip off. Their time is just quite simply worth more, literally.

I realize that won't sit right with some people's values, and I sympathise, but it's a fairly straightforward financial case.

YANBU I wouldn't be happy sharing with a colleague either.

It's interesting you think it's related to sex ie they wouldn't ask men to share. When I was working in a remote location and had to share with a female colleague, the men had to share a room too. It also wasn't related to seniority. But, as I said earlier, different sectors and different locations definitely impact.