Conferences offer team building and learning experiences for the optometric staff. In part one of this two-part series, I provide tips for tackling the costs (registration, transportation, lodging, and meals) associated with attendance.*
Registration: Check for savings codes
Look for “free” registration codes or conferences that provide free or discounted staff registration.
For example, exhibiting companies at Vision Expo often offer free exhibit hall registration with a code. If you want a staff member to spend most of their time there instead of class (think buyers, opticians, etc.), this is a great option for cost savings.
Transportation: Use credit card points/shop around
To counteract the costs associated with transportation, look into credit card points toward travel and reasonably priced flights and hotels. Examples of websites that offer discounted deals include: kayak.com, trivago.com, expedia.com, cheapoair.com, and cheapflights.com. Another suggestion: consider Air B&Bs or vacation rentals if you’re considering taking a large group of staff members instead of spending on multiple hotel rooms. You can utilize airbnb.com and vrbo.com to find these. If traveling by ground, carpooling can be affordable and fun.
Meals: Investigate hotel/conference offerings
A free hotel breakfast goes a long way in saving money. Additionally, some conferences will include certain meals or offer lunch or breakfast symposiums, the latter of which enable your staff to kill two birds with one stone.
For non-provided meals, you can give a daily stipend. Stipends can either be reimbursed after the trip with proof of receipts or given ahead of time as a type of daily allowance. Your call!
The U.S. General Services Administration at GSA.gov contains an area where you can plug in your destination city and see the government per diem rates. This should be used to calculate a minimum for food and beverage allowance.
Communicate clearly with staff on the specific costs the stipend will cover. This way, staff will know it is expected that activities beyond this will be at their own expense.
Putting a policy in place
Establish a clear policy regarding employee pay while staff are attending a conference, so everyone is on the same page. Non-exempt employees should be paid for any time spent at conferences/training events. They do not have to be paid for free time while on a trip, however. This time is subject to overtime pay if appropriate hours are earned. Salaried employees do not have to be additionally compensated. They earn their normal wages.
Outside of a normal commute time, any work-related travel time that falls during normal business hours should be paid to non-exempt employees regardless of method of transportation. Air travel falling outside of normal working hours does not have to be compensated, while driving time should be.
For example, my optician attended this year’s Vision Expo East. We traveled on Thursday (her normal working day), so she did not officially work that day. She attended the conference most of the day Friday and Saturday, had plenty of free time to explore, and we traveled home Sunday. When all hours (travel and time actively spent at the conference) were totaled, she ended up being compensated for what would have been her normal Thursday and Friday office hours. OM
*Note: Federal laws (namely the Fair Labor Standards Act or FLSA) dictate how employers must compensate their employees regarding work-related travel (as well as a few exceptions). A great resource for more information is https://www.cedrsolutions.com/travel-seminar-time-compensable. Additionally, some states have their own laws (such as California, Wisconsin, Connecticut, and Washington, DC). You should always check with your state department of labor and HR manager to make sure you are in compliance, if considering employee travel.
