We live in the land of corporate relocation. Seriously. I thought DC was bad with all the congressional jobs that came and went with whoever was in power. There was also a lot of military moves with people coming into the region. But I've never seen anything like this. Our good friends who moved in when we did and have kids about the same age? Yeah, moving away 11 months later. I can't imagine having to do that. I also can't imagine the expense of all this on companies. Seriously.
The amount of money companies are spending to move people is insane. So these nice folks will probably have $100,000 spent on the move inbetween travel for the family, realtor's fees, packing expenses and general relocation costs. And all this for people they just moved less than a year ago. It seems like a lot of money when everyone keeps crying poverty and not enough money for jobs and stuff.
Another family I know is moving to Asia for work. So in addition to the probably $100,000 on the general move (realtor's fees, moving costs, etc.), they also have to pay for private school in China for the kids, trips back and forth and then moving the family back at the end. I think they said it will cost the company about $300,000 a year for them to live in China. Wow.
Granted, these are mid to high level executives so not your average worker. But still. I'd love to see a study on whether all this money spent on relocation is worth it for the company. And I'm not just saying this because my friends are moving. Okay, maybe I am.
Your $300,000 figure is way low. Not only do expats get relocation and school and nice cushy business class seats for their annual home leave, they generally also get their rent free, their taxes done, a nice chunk of change at the beginning of the move to help pay for "incidentals" and a nice chunk of change when they come back for more "incidentals" and, of course, another nice check for all their trouble. Plus, assuming the cost of living is higher in china they will get an adjustment for that as well. Our rent in Tokyo alone was $18,000 per month (and we lived in the "cheap seats" compared to many expats who's rent was more like $25k per month or higher).
ReplyDeleteIs it worth it to the company? Yes. Believe it or not. Training someone to "think" like a US company executive to "think" is impossible.
TMI?
As someone who has been on the receiving end of those benefits... yes.. absolutely worth it.
ReplyDeleteArmando