Negotiations
Training
Negotiating
To Get Moving:
Relocation
Negotiations
Over the past
few decades, advances
in technology, the internationalization of markets and the ease
of transportation have caused hundreds of thousands of companies
to expand operations across the country and the globe. With expansion
comes the need to not only hire local talent but also the desire
of many companies to move talented individuals and, at times, entire
departments to field offices. Relocation has become a reality in
today's business
world.
Picking up one's
family and moving
to a new community, leaving memories and many friendships behind
is
stressful enough. Negotiating a relocation package should not
add
to this stress. Unfortunately, it often does make the experience
much more difficult. Some companies do not have formal relocation
packages in place while others negotiate
each package on a case-by-case basis. In some rare instances,
employees are expected to shoulder the entire burden of a move.
What makes all of this more difficult is that if an employee refuses
a "request" to relocate, chances are that person will
end up with a permanent mark (written or unwritten) in their record
and may even get forced out the door. For those looking for a new
job, the unwillingness to relocate may lock them out of opportunities
outside of their community.
When
negotiating a relocation package, it is important to first investigate
a company's policy. Packages vary from company to company and, in
some cases, from position to position. It is helpful to not only
know your
company's policy but also what other companies in your industry
or community offer. This can provide leverage during a package
negotiation. If your employer or potential employer's package
is much lower than what the market generally provides, this will
provide you with some leverage.
For the most
part, a majority of companies will cover moving expenses (often
up to a certain amount), relocation assistance (such as the use
of a local realtor), travel allowances (should you move prior to
your family), listing expenses (in the instance when a house must
be placed on the market or listed as a rental) and temporary lodging
expenses incurred in a new community. Some companies will also cover
one or more trips to the new community in order to begin searching
for a new house. Thanks to the Internet, a great
deal of the research related to this activity can take place
before even setting foot on an airplane.
Some other items
you may want to consider
negotiating, depending on your situation, when relocating include:
* Mortgage payment,
taxes, insurance and maintenance on an existing house before it
is sold on the open market
* Extra time off to manage the move
* Low or no interest loans
to help with a new house purchase
* Increases in salary based on an increased cost of living
As
you negotiate, provide your employer with reasons as how these
added items will benefit them as well as you. For example, providing
added
assistance to relocate will help you settle into a community
faster and make you more productive at work quickly.
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