Frequent Flyer Kickbacks

September 12th, 2015
ethics, travel
A: I'm looking to place an order for my company. What's your rate?

B: We charge $X.

A: That's a little high; can you do better?

B: What if I throw in a little something extra, just for you?

A: Oh?

B: Say I give you 1%. Maybe take yourself a little vacation?
This is clearly corrupt. Person A is negotiating on behalf of their company, so any discounts person B offers should be to A's company not directly to A. Yes, A is the decision maker, but they need to be choosing based on what their company needs, not what kickbacks they'll get.

This is exactly what frequent flyer miles are. A business traveler buys a ticket with company money, and the airline passes back a little "thank you" bribe to the traveler for choosing them. Why do we allow this?

Comment via: google plus, facebook, substack

Recent posts on blogs I like:

The structure of ideological abuse

Standing on your spiritual own two feet

via Thing of Things March 9, 2026

The Newest Technology in Frozen

There are lots of different things in Frozen that are new-ish, but my dad and I were wondering: what is the actual newest thing in Frozen? This led me to watch Frozen a lot while taking notes. Some of the things I found included: Elastic hair-ties A safety …

via Lily Wise's Blog Posts March 1, 2026

2025-26 New Year review

This is an annual post reviewing the last year and setting intentions for next year. I look over different life areas (work, health, parenting, effectiveness, etc) and analyze my life tracking data. Highlights include a minimal group house, the usefulness…

via Victoria Krakovna January 19, 2026

more     (via openring)