Relocation Briefs (Sept. 24, 2001)

PAY HIKES FOR EXPATS
Toronto — With international assignments increasing, employers are being forced to improve compensation packages for expats in order to stay competitive, a study by consulting firm William M. Mercer Ltd. shows. Employees abroad compare compensation deals with other expats they meet, so competitive comp deals are a must. To discourage employees from leaving while on assignment, 20 per cent of companies now pay part of a mobility premium at the beginning of an assignment with the remainder paid on return to the home country. The survey found mobility premiums are typically just under 15 per cent of gross base salary, but can go up to 30 or 40 per cent for more difficult locations like Algeria, China and Columbia.

BUSINESS TRAVEL BELT-TIGHTENING EXPECTED
Rochester, Wis. — North American firms will be targeting business travel expenses in 2002 with initiatives that should see an overall drop of seven per cent in travel spending, predicts relocation firm Runzheimer International. While airfares are up, employees will make fewer trips and use lower-scale suppliers. Car rentals should go up about two per cent, but lodging and meal costs will drop about 10 per cent each through the use of cheaper hotels and stricter management of entertainment expense accounts.

WATCH WHAT YOU EAT
Orlando, Fla. — Business travelers visiting Third World nations have a 50/50 shot of experiencing diarrhea, reports U.S.-based iJet Travel Intelligence. About one-half of the 50 million people who annually travel from an industrialized country to a developing world nation will suffer diarrhea at least once during a two-week trip.

FLUFFY AND ROVER
Rochester, Wis. — Airlines are modifying rules to better protect pets taken onboard. New regulations in the United States and a desire to improve an animal transportation rate that sees one per cent of all pets arrived injured or dead is bringing about change, says Nat Workman of Runzheimer International. Many airlines are now refusing to fly pets during hot summer months and pets are being allowed in cabins. Employees taking pets along when transferring overseas should inquire about special health requirements such as quarantines, Workman says, adding that professional pet shipping companies are available to help with red tape involved in taking pets into other countries.

RELOCATING TO TORONTO
Mississauga, Ont. — A new book offers transferring employees a guide to relocating to Toronto. Destination Canada has published Relocation 101: Focus on the Greater Toronto Area the first of a series of resources on Canadian cities. A guide to Victoria is due this fall. For more information contact [email protected]. HR professionals can also contact local chambers of commerce and boards of trade for relocation information.

EXPAT INVESTMENT UNPROTECTED
Philadelphia — While firms are spending a million dollars or more to send an employee on a foreign assignment that investment is often lost due to high expat turnover rates, a survey of 143 HR professionals and 453 transferees confirms. Turnover rates at some of the firms surveyed by U.S.-based employee benefits supplier Cigna Corp. reported 50 per cent of expats quit their firm within two years, defeating one of the goals of foreign assignments — making sure expats bring knowledge and expertise gained overseas back to the firm. Companies can improve turnover rates by better evaluating employees’ personalities, making adequate investments in support programs and setting specific objectives and duration dates for assignments, says Karen Thomas of Cigna.

WOMEN UNDER-REPRESENTED OVERSEAS
New York — Expatriate assignments may be one of the last male bastions to eventually break down. Catalyst, an advocacy group for women in business, reports that only 13 per cent of corporate North American foreign assignments go to women. Barriers include: misplaced concerns about women’s safety, fear that women will not be allowed to be effective by males in some countries — such as parts of the Middle East, Asia and Latin America — and concerns married women and those with children will have difficulty relocating. Women are advised to help break down barriers by taking positions that lead to international travel and advocating for change in their organizations.

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