With Canadian companies relocating 110,000 employees annually at a cost of about $1 billion there’s a lot at stake financially. Unfortunately, elements that improve the chances of a successful move are sometimes missing, a study of 100 Canadian firms by Royal LePage Relocation Services shows.
The report, Emerging Trends in Employee Mobility notes the average Canadian company invests almost $20,000 to move a single employee to another location in the country, while large companies (with more than 1,000 employees) typically spend almost double that figure. But there are a number of employee benefits and services that are being overlooked.
According to companies surveyed, certain benefits are often still not available to relocating employees. The report yielded the following rather surprising results, notes Royal LePage:
•one out of five companies does not pay for legal fees;
•one in three does not pay for mortgage discharge penalties and land survey costs;
•one in three companies provides employees with a guaranteed home price plan;
•more than half of the employees surveyed do not provide employees with any assistance for duplication of housing costs (if the relocating employee is temporarily carrying the costs of two houses);
•four out of five companies pay the spouse’s expenses;
•one out of every five companies does not pay for the spouse’s airfare;
•fewer than one in four provide job counselling for the spouse;
•two per cent of companies help compensate for lost spousal income;
•one in four companies pay for baby-sitting and pet boarding while the parents are away on a house-hunting trip;
•three per cent of companies provide elder-care support during a house-hunting trip;
•39 per cent support an employee’s bridge financing costs and 57 per cent of companies cover land transfer tax;
•in general, less than half the companies surveyed provide additional financial assistance for items such as cost-of-living differential, rent differential or income tax equalization; and
•70 per cent of the companies do not provide help with getting visas and permits.
The survey also asked respondents to rate 23 employee relocation challenges on their importance both in terms of frequency and severity. The following were identified as the most common problems:
•controlling costs;
•managing policy exceptions;
•balancing employee expectations against costs; and
•family adjustments to the new community.
The most difficult problems noted were:
•calculating cost differentials;
•arranging overseas transfers;
•employee resistance to permanent relocations; and
•balancing employee expectations and relocation costs.
The report, Emerging Trends in Employee Mobility notes the average Canadian company invests almost $20,000 to move a single employee to another location in the country, while large companies (with more than 1,000 employees) typically spend almost double that figure. But there are a number of employee benefits and services that are being overlooked.
According to companies surveyed, certain benefits are often still not available to relocating employees. The report yielded the following rather surprising results, notes Royal LePage:
•one out of five companies does not pay for legal fees;
•one in three does not pay for mortgage discharge penalties and land survey costs;
•one in three companies provides employees with a guaranteed home price plan;
•more than half of the employees surveyed do not provide employees with any assistance for duplication of housing costs (if the relocating employee is temporarily carrying the costs of two houses);
•four out of five companies pay the spouse’s expenses;
•one out of every five companies does not pay for the spouse’s airfare;
•fewer than one in four provide job counselling for the spouse;
•two per cent of companies help compensate for lost spousal income;
•one in four companies pay for baby-sitting and pet boarding while the parents are away on a house-hunting trip;
•three per cent of companies provide elder-care support during a house-hunting trip;
•39 per cent support an employee’s bridge financing costs and 57 per cent of companies cover land transfer tax;
•in general, less than half the companies surveyed provide additional financial assistance for items such as cost-of-living differential, rent differential or income tax equalization; and
•70 per cent of the companies do not provide help with getting visas and permits.
The survey also asked respondents to rate 23 employee relocation challenges on their importance both in terms of frequency and severity. The following were identified as the most common problems:
•controlling costs;
•managing policy exceptions;
•balancing employee expectations against costs; and
•family adjustments to the new community.
The most difficult problems noted were:
•calculating cost differentials;
•arranging overseas transfers;
•employee resistance to permanent relocations; and
•balancing employee expectations and relocation costs.
