Over the years, the field of Human Resource Management has been developed a great deal. A lot of work has been done, and a lot of new areas to study have been discovered. There is also a great deal of research done in some of the unexplored areas of past years. Many new facts have been unearthed, and many new, out-of-the-box techniques have been developed to make sure that the workers remain calm, happy, productive and motivated while doing their respective jobs. It is a fruit of human resource management that workers today have become more loyal to their firms and were displaying organizational citizenship behavior. One of the important issues which were not very well covered in the past was the relocation of the talent from one area to the place of business or work. However, new research has pointed out that this area needs to be discussed in order to make sure that workers remain happy, motivated and productive.
According to (WorldWideMobilityAssociation, 2014), the average worker who is relocated is between 36-40 years of age. The annual salary of this worker is around $90,000 to $130,000. This means that usually the middle managers are transferred or relocated. This statistics will help us develop an appropriate strategy in order to remove their fear of moving to a new location. The association suggests that organizations should provide assistance in terms of home-purchase, and other necessary purchases that is going to make the process of workers’ relocation easier and will motivate him to work hard for the organization. In the absence of any form of assistance, the worker will be unlikely to move to a new location and is likely to quit or leave the job. Hence, assurances of help and encouragement and can do wonders for the relocating workers. A study finds out that the assurances of help reduces the stress level of workers and make them more willing to relocate to a new location.
(Moyle & Parkes, 1999) believe that workers relocation can be very stressful for both their families and themselves. In a study discussed in their paper in the context of Swedish workers, it was found that workers displayed both psychological and physical symptoms when they were exposed to the relocation decision. The basic reason behind this is that human dislike change and it creates disequilibrium in their lives and routines which they were used to in the past. The study discovers an important find in the field of workers relocating from one place to another. It suggests that the level of stress of workers decrease as the support of their new colleagues and manager increases. This is an important finding. It can be used to plan out the orientation for the workers in the new branch or workplace. Not only the workers, but also their peers should be made to attend a workshop where they should be taught how to behave with their new transferring co-worker. This will improve the rapport of the colleague at the workplace and at the same time it will reduce the level of stress of the incoming or relocating worker. In order to counter the problem, many big companies like IBM and Myers are offering a complete package to relocate employees. This involves buying their old homes, paying their realty fee and helping them find a new home at the new location. This along with other normal and routine services like commuting, WiFi, phones, etc. (Thornell, 2014). The idea has been a success, and many companies are keeping these costs as a part of their expansion plan and restructuring. They are also accounting for these costs in their feasibility studies and project costs. One company is keeping ten percent of its sales as a part of relocation benefits that will be paid to its workers in the future. Relocation benefit includes the cost of expenses that will help the workers settle into a new location well. Many training programmes can be held for the relocating workers by the companies such as financial management, personal management, interpersonal skills, and any other training that is deemed necessary for the workers in order to do well in the new location, and that will ease their pressure of the new place and new environment. In line with the above arguments (Bolar, 2000) agrees with the approach of the organizations providing relocation benefits. This will ensure that employees are retained in the organizations. Often workers leave the organization when they are frequently relocated. In order to retain workers, it is very important for the organizations to provide them monetary and career-oriented incentives to not only retain them, but also to motivate them to work harder for the organization. Many governments are also encouraging relocation of workers from one job to another due to slim economic conditions around the world. For example, Canadian Government is giving a heavy reduction in income for relocating workers. This has helped the workers to shift from industry to another and find a suitable job (Similie, 2014)
Moving to a new place can be challenging. Apart from new work challenges, there is a lot going on in the life of relocating worker elsewhere. For example, a job search for a spouse will be required, find a new place to call home will be required and to acquaint with the new environment will also be mandatory. Many people can lose focus while trying to figure out so many things at once. The key here is to remain organized. Relocating workers should be taught about personal management in the new environment through a workshop. This will enable them to meet the challenges of the new workplace and practical life more efficiently. Juggling with a lot of problems can be very stressful, and the problem intensifies if you do not know how to deal with them. Telling the relocating workers how to deal with this situation is needed at that time and should be provided to them by the firm getting their services. It will ease the pressure on workers and make them more willing to relocate and move to a new workplace and environment.
(Kletzer & Rozen, 2014) argue that the US economy in the past decade or so has gone through so many structural, technical and fiscal changes that it is hard to keep track of all of it. Similarly, many US workers have been unemployed due to these structural changes. It has become mandatory and imperative for them to relocate in order to find better job opportunities. This is a challenge because many workers are single skilled and have been working in one industry for so long that it becomes very cumbersome for them to work elsewhere. This is a challenge that today’s employer needs to solve and take corrective action. A good idea is to organize training. This will help the employers find and train new talent. Since, a productive worker is the life and blood of any organization, by creating a pool of them, the employer will be easing the pressure on him to find good, talent and hard working labor. Similarly, it will increase the confidence level of unemployed workers as they will become more marketable and will be able to find better jobs. Hence, training in different skills is essential for the success of both the relocating workers and the employers in order to succeed in the era of cut throat competition where not only jobs are hard to find, but also talented and productive workers are scarce.
Another important initiative could come from the government for providing assistance to relocate workers seeking jobs. (Davidson, 2014) states that the recent programmes by the Australian government to provide up to $9000 to workers who are relocating for work The objective of this programme is to improve the mobility of workers. As a part of the deal, these workers are allowed to attend the new workplace that provides them training in interpersonal and communication skills. All of this is done to make workers more marketable and make them more suitable for different jobs. This scheme has been a success as more than 145 people have been able to attain a job in a very short period of time.
Another important workshop for the relocating workers can about explaining them the risk and health issues of the new location. This is extremely important. Since, most of the workers are unaware about the health and security risks and often fell victim to it. So, it is a good idea for employers and government to explain the health and security risks to the relocating workers. Among the information given to them, they should also be given information about what to do and who to contact when faced with an unforeseeable situation. This will reduce the mental strain of the workers and will provide them riddance from the fear of the unknown when moving to a new location (Holmes, 2014)
In the end, it can be concluded from the above discussion that there are some workshops that are very important and should be provided to the workers at the time of relocation. These workshops will ensure that the workers are not troubled by any unforeseeable events or situation in a new place, and they can focus on their work without having to worry about the outside factors. Among the workshop recommended, all the employers should provide them with stress management techniques, health and security risks, interpersonal skills, dealing with their peers, and how to deal with unforeseeable events. This will make the workers’ life a lot easier in the new place and will ensure that the workers are well motivated, productive and able to do their job well without having to worry about any extraneous factors.
References
Bolar, S. (2000). Relocation benefits for foreign workers: A recruiting and retention tool. Techrepublic. Retrieved 5 November 2014, from http://Relocation benefits for foreign workers: A recruiting and retention tool
Davidson, H. (2014). Relocation scheme for job seekers attracts 145 people since July. The Guardian.
Holme, R. (2014). Ensuring employee health and security overseas | Ruth Holmes | Re:locate magazine. Relocatemagazine.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014, from http://www.relocatemagazine.com/articles/2683ensuring-employee-health-and-security-overseas
Kletzer, L., & Rosen, H. (2014). Easing the burden on US workers. Journal Of Organizational Research, 22(1), 232-230.
Moyle, P., & Parkes, K. (1999). The eects of transition stress: a relocation study. Journal Of Organization Behavior, 20(1), 625-640.
Smilie, C. (2014). Canada's Economic Action Force Doesn't Help the Labour Force. Huffington Post. Retrieved 5 November 2014, from http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/christopher-smillie/economic-action-plan_b_6077328.html
Smith, J. (2012). 8 Steps To A Successful Job Relocation. Forbes.
The Workforce Mobility Association,. (2014). Relocation Assistance: US Domestically Transferred Employees. Retrieved 5 November 2014, from http://www.worldwideerc.org/Resources/Research/Documents/ERC-Reports/2013%20Relocation%20Assistance_Exec%20Summary.pdf
Thornell, C. (2014). What relocating workers look for in Massachusetts - The Boston Globe.BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014, from http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/2014/10/11/welcome-massachusetts/DVInT5FDvhOBfU50MCFF1K/story.html
