Job Relocation Survey- What Hard Data Reveals in 2022

Have you or someone you know relocated for a job? Moving can be a stressful experience, but it's sometimes a necessary decision. To better understand the thoughts and attitudes concerning relocation for work, we surveyed 1,000 individuals who recently made the jump.

Job Relocation Survey- What Hard Data Reveals

Here at Allied, it's our goal to make moving as stress-free as possible. We hope this presentation of facts and figures can help you better understand trends surrounding job relocation.

What are the most common reasons people are willing to relocate for a job? According to our survey of 1,000 adults, the most common reason was career advancement or the opportunity to make more money (36.96%). Other reasons included the chance to be closer to friends or family (17.88%) or transferring to a new division or office (15.48%).

Others voiced that their company moved (13.79%), a miscellaneous reason (8.29%), or that their company got acquired (7.59%).

Various factors motivate individuals to move long distance for their job. However, we wanted to gather more information to help illustrate the whole picture. Now that we know why people seem to move, we want to know who was moving.

We found that individuals aged 25-34 (37.25%) and individuals 35-44 (23.78%) were most likely to be willing to move. This is likely because younger to mid-career professionals may be willing to do what's necessary to climb the ranks within their company.

Interestingly enough, only 17.78% of the youngest group, 18-25, said they relocated at that age. Those in the youngest age group may be still finding their footing in a long-term position.

Contrast that to older workers, such as individuals aged 45-54 and 54+ who only made up 9.49% and 6.59% of the survey, respectively.

Reasons For Relocating

The majority of those relocating for work are doing so for career advancement or a raise. The next most common reason is to be closer to family and friends or other relationships.

Who is on the Move?

Younger and mid-career workers are most likely to move, while older, more established workers are less likely to relocate.

Does company size have any effect on whether workers will relocate? According to our data, workers appear to be willing to move regardless of their company's size.

However, the most significant percentage of relocated workers came from a company of 100-499 employees (23.18%). The next largest group came from companies with 50-99 workers (18.18%). The next group was small companies, sized 1-49 employees (17.48%).

While smaller to midsize companies most commonly relocate their employees, it appears that larger companies relocate employees less. 500-999 employees saw 16.18%, 1,000-4,999 employees saw 13.49%, and very large companies of 5000+ employees only saw 11.49% of employees that relocated.

Assistance From Employers

Moving can be expensive, especially when the move is cross country or long distance. Thankfully, most respondents (64.14%) reported they received some sort of compensation package for relocating. However, compensation packages vary greatly, and that still leaves 35.86% of workers picking up the cost themselves.

At Allied, we aim to be a secure and cost-effective option for your long-distance move. We have over 85 years of nationwide moving under our belt, and we're confident we can get your belongings to your new location with ease. Whether you're moving across town or across the country, our team of experts is there to help you every step of the way.

Of those that received a relocation expense package:

• 33.07% of workers had moving expenses covered
• 18.08% received sponsored trips to look for housing
• 16.58% received a lump sum to use as needed
• 16.48% received payment for temporary living costs
• 15.78% received a miscellaneous expense allowance

Time Given to Move

Moving is stressful enough on its own, but add a time constraint, and it is easy for stress to skyrocket.

• Most relocating workers had between 1 and 2 months (34.37%).
• However, just behind that group were the unlucky workers who had 30 days or less to relocate (33.07%).
• Less commonly, workers had 61-90 days (18.98%), and the lucky few, 13.59%, had 91+ days to relocate.

The Most Challenging Part of Moving

Researching new housing, calculating costs, and packing can be time-consuming and stressful. That doesn't include unpacking, getting to know your new area, and meeting new people.

What did workers say was the most challenging part of moving?

• 30.57% said simply finding new housing
• 25.77% blamed most of their stress on acclimating to their new community
• 18.28% disliked finding new services such as utilities and doctors
• 17.28% struggled to find new friends
• 8.09% of respondents listed another reason

As stressful and challenging as moving is, we're happy to report the majority of those that relocated have an overall positive sentiment towards their relocation (56.64%). 29.07% of respondents have a neutral outlook, and 14.29% have a negative outlook.

Post-COVID Relocation Thoughts

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many of the attitudes surrounding the traditional workplace. With many more employees working from home, we wanted to know how thoughts on relocation may have changed.

We asked 1,000 adults who have relocated for a job if their thoughts on relocation have changed. The answer was split pretty evenly. 50.95% of respondents answered that their thoughts have not changed, while 49.05% said they'd look for remote opportunities instead.

METHODOLOGY

We surveyed 1,000 individuals who have relocated for a job previously.

FAIR USE STATEMENT

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