Ever relocated for a job?

strollin

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I was reading an article talking about how the number of people relocating to another state or city for a job has been dropping steadily. According to the article, the reason has to do with companies trying to reduce cost by hiring locally rather than pay a new employee's expenses to move across the country.

Anyway, that got me to thinking (I do that sometimes!) and realized that in my 45 year working life, I have never relocated for a job (unless you count being sent to different duty stations while in the Army). I have always only sought work within the city/county where I lived.

How about you? Has a company paid your expenses for you to relocate to another location? Where do you move to and from?

If you were offered a job in another state and the company paid for your moving expenses, would you consider relocating?


Link to article (in case you're interested): https://finance.yahoo.com/news/number-job-seekers-relocating-hit-182706277.html?guccounter=1
 
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I can't speak for myself since I've never worked, but my dad experienced something similar.
He was working in a city, and the company decided he wasn't needed in that city anymore, and he was asked to move to another one 300km away. He accepted and we haven't moved since. It was within the same province though.
 
Around 1955, my dad moved our family clear across the US, from New Jersey to California, relocating for a new job.

I've pretty much always been against relocating since I was already established (family, house, friends, etc...) so didn't want to uproot and move somewhere else.

A few years back, I was called by a Microsoft recruiter about a job. She asked if I would be willing to relocate from Calif to Redmond, WA and I told her no. She then asked if I knew that MS was located in Redmond and I told her I was aware of that, but I also knew MS had facilities all over the country. She said the job opening was in Redmond only so I told her no.
 
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I've never changed house for a job move.
But I have relocated myself and changed jobs due to a house move...

I've had short term "relocations" my company sent me to Colombia (the country not the state.) that was kind of nice, as they rented a serviced apartment for me, but that was a "short term" thing.

To be honest, I've never worked at the kind of level where I would get paid to move.
(I mean the kind of relocation package where an employer either has you move and basically pays all the costs for the sale of your house and new purchase, or the kind of move where they pay for your accommodation whilst you are away, as well as pay for "maintenance" -gardeners etc, whilst you are away.)
Where I am in the world at least that sort of thing would be the preserve of pretty much only C-level types in large companies.
 
You work as a tech right Trotter? Back in the early days of my career ('70's), I worked as a tech for IBM. I worked with a few guys that IBM had moved for tech jobs that (at the time) paid $7/hr.

My closest friend is one of them. IBM hired him from Detroit, MI and moved him across the country to San Jose, CA. He didn't own a house, but they moved all his belongings and even shipped his car. He flew back and forth several times as well on their dime, for his interview and then a trip to find a place to live and then a final time to actually make the move.

A couple of years ago, my son was working for HP as a Sales Engineer. He was being laid off from his position in Calif but another HP facility in Dallas picked him up. They gave him a lump sum of $9K to move from Calif to TX. Just before he made the move, another company in Dallas offered him a job for more money which he took. He quit HP and moved to Dallas (that other company paid to ship his car and belongings). HP never asked him to pay that $9K back!
 
Around 1955, my dad moved our family clear across the US, from New Jersey to California, relocating for a new job.

I've pretty much always been against relocating since I was already established (family, house, friends, etc...) so didn't want to uproot and move somewhere else.
Yes, I had problems witht that too, but it ended up being all right. I lost my old friend but I gained new ones. This city is also way better than the old one, which was only a small town with not much to do.
To be honest, I've never worked at the kind of level where I would get paid to move.
(I mean the kind of relocation package where an employer either has you move and basically pays all the costs for the sale of your house and new purchase, or the kind of move where they pay for your accommodation whilst you are away, as well as pay for "maintenance" -gardeners etc, whilst you are away.)
Where I am in the world at least that sort of thing would be the preserve of pretty much only C-level types in large companies.
Would that happen even if it's a permanent relocation?
When I moved we just sold the old house and got a new one in the new city. The company probably paid for the actual moving of things, like furniture and such, to the new house, and probably a bonus and a little bump in the paycheck, although this also can be due to the fact that this city is more expensive than the old one, so it probably doesn't have anything to do with moving.


A couple of years ago, my son was working for HP as a Sales Engineer. He was being laid off from his position in Calif but another HP facility in Dallas picked him up. They gave him a lump sum of $9K to move from Calif to TX. Just before he made the move, another company in Dallas offered him a job for more money which he took. He quit HP and moved to Dallas (that other company paid to ship his car and belongings). HP never asked him to pay that $9K back!

Sales engineer? I never heard of that term being used. What does a sales engineer do?
 
Sales Engineer: The role of technical sales engineers essentially involves translating and explaining highly complex technical information to customers and clients, focusing on revealing how a product or piece of equipment can solve specific problems. They therefore play an important role in the modern sales process.
 
Would that happen even if it's a permanent relocation?
When I moved we just sold the old house and got a new one in the new city. The company probably paid for the actual moving of things, like furniture and such, to the new house,

If you do a parmenant move, you'd sell your house and move, the company may pay things like solicitor fees, and the cost for a moving team.

If your house doesn't sell straight away it may be on the market for some time, and you aren't there like normal maintaining it, in that case the company may also pay maintenance guys to come cut the grass and keep it looking good in order etc to help with your sale.
 
In 1990, I bought a house that had belonged to an IBM employee that got relocated from California to Minnesota. The company made an offer to him for the house that he could either take or leave. He decided it was as good as he could sell it for on his own so took their offer.

We actually bought the house from IBM. While it was on the market, they paid to have the landscaping done but they also made some minor improvements such as having a railing installed on the deck in the back yard that didn't originally have a railing.

After we bought the house, I talked to the previous owner and found out that we bought the house for less than what IBM had paid him for it!
 
As I said earlier, I've never been at the level where company relocation would be a thing. It's more a question: "do you want the job? Then move"

People a little less generically skilled may get an offer where they get a bonus for moving,
That then may change to we'll pay all your costs and buy your house so you don't have to worry...
They aren't spending money buying houses for/from plebs like me, that sort of thing will be very senior level people, or people with very high demand skills.
 
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