The Do’s and Dont’s of Building an Employee Relocation Package

Relocating for a job position is a stressful business—both for you and your employees. You are transferring an individual along with their entire household to a new and often unknown city. It can be a terrifying prospect. Yet when you have a standout employee that is the best candidate for a position, employee relocations are worth the energy and cost. Plus, you can improve the process by having a solid relocation package in place. An employee relocation package encourages commitment to relocation since the package outlines everything they can expect to take place during the process.

What to Do

To provide your employees with the strongest start for their new position in a new city at your company, organize a comprehensive relocation package. Once you have created this package, you will be able to use the basic outline for all subsequent relocations. Simply update the details to fit an employee’s needs, as well as the new location where they are relocating to. Here are some areas that all relocation packages should include:

• Start by giving employees a timeframe for completing their relocation.

By knowing up front how long a relocation is expected to take, employees can plan out their already busy lives to accommodate the request. How long should you provide?

The majority of employees, according to the Talent Intelligence Company, have less than a month to relocate and start their new job. In fact, the max time allotted for a relocation is up to eight weeks from moving and finding a new home to starting a new position.

• Provide funding for the move.

It takes a lot of money to move. As a result, when it comes to encouraging your employees to complete a relocation—money can make or break the process. Forbes highlights different areas you need to finance as part of your employee relocation package.

Start with covering the cost of moving, which includes packing, temporary storage, short-term housing, and meals. Include funding for all property transactions including early lease terminations, closing costs, real estate agent commissions, and down payments. Costs for utilities, vehicles, and life changes, such as changing daycares for children, also need to be covered.

• Provide moving and transportation services.

Include a list of resources that make it easier for your employees to transition. This can include names of recommended movers and storage companies, as well as transportation services. If your company offers any special discounts for working with certain businesses during the move, list this information in the relocation package. Also, provide resources based on the employee’s new destination, such as the local internet providers or religious organizations.

As you edit your relocation package to best meet the needs of individual employees, you will make certain accommodations. For example, an employee who is single and without children will need different financial and cultural services related to someone with a family of five. In addition, your company’s list of do’s is likely to evolve over time with the changing needs of your employees.

What Not to Do

To create an optimal relocation package, you need to know what areas to avoid or rectify. Start with these don’ts:

• Forget the spouse, partner, children, and/or pets.

If your employee has a household with any of these occupants, make certain to provide concessions for these individuals during the move. Consider what they will need to oblige their needs, such as finding a new job for a spouse or partner or veterinarians for pets. A make-or-break scenario can easily stem from forgetting to provide relocation services that include these individuals…or animals.

• Give an excessively short time frame for the relocation.

As previously noted in the what-to-do section, you need to give an employee at least a month to get settled. But what if you need them to start within the week? Go ahead and scratch that plan. Find a temporary solution until your employee can relocate. By cutting short their relocation time, you in effect reduce the chances that the employee will successfully relocate.

• Require employees to stipulate each expense prior to reimbursement.

Let’s say you require your employees turn in receipts of every purchase related to the relocation, and then you decide whether or not to reimburse them for the purchase. That is a no-go in the rule book for employee relocation packages. But how do you ensure they are spending their company coffers on moving expenses?

You have to extend the concept of trust…while also providing a comprehensive list of exactly what is covered during the relocation. If you attempt to nickel and dime your employees over their expenditures for the move, it can fracture the employer-employee relationship. Instead, include a list of everything that you will reimburse with a cap spending amount for categories, such as housing expenses, moving expenses, etc.

These don’ts are a good starting point. Over time and with experience in employee relocations, no doubt your company will have new items to include here.

Providing Moving Company Resources

Here at Simple Moving Labor we offer customized and affordable moving services for employee relocations. Save money and help your employees reach the end goal of having a successful move and smooth transition to their new position.

Speak to a Relocation Specialist