A Worker Can’t Afford To Relocate For His Job, So His Company Offers To Move Him Somewhere Cheaper — With A Pay Cut
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Relocating for work is no mean feat. Because you’re working at a company, a new place where you have to get your head around a new role, a new office, and new people – and at the same time you’re moving your life across the country (or, indeed, countries). You have to find a place to live, sometimes before you even arrive, and pay all the moving expenses at a time where there might even be delays with your new salary. And then if you have a partner and kids, you have to get them all settled in too.
The guy in this story has started his new job, but is struggling with the relocation aspect, since his new job is in an expensive area where he and his wife can’t really afford to live. But there has been a new opportunity open up in the company, which he has been appointed to, which will mean living somewhere wholly different anyway. The problem? It will also come with significantly less money.
Read on to find out more.
Relocate for the company, “That’ll be a salary adjustment”
I left a company back in April that I was extremely undervalued in and got a significant raise, relocation benefit, and increase in benefits. All good.
Well, it had me move from one high cost of living area to another, so all a win. Except the housing was just nuts. Everything was similarly priced, except the houses. Those were unimaginably higher.
My wife was not impressed. I enjoyed the job and the new area, but my wife and kid stayed behind until we were sure we’d get the best price for selling our house to be able to attempt to buy a house in the new area.
But then, things changed at the new job.
Then, after about five months at the job, I recognised a hole in my organisation. It was somewhere to build value for my team and steer a category that was in desperate need of a strategy in a good direction.
The benefit is that it’s something I can sink my teeth into and really make an impact. It’s a slight increase in scope but nothing Earth shattering.
Also, my wife was much happier at the new area, and it seems like it would solve a ton of issues. Company gets a higher tier contributor in an area that needs a lot of love, and I get to actually afford a house. Complete “Win/Win”.
Then, my new boss tells me I’m getting a new offer.
Read on to find out more about the new offer.
I get it, I’m relocating from a very high cost of living location to a much lower cost of living area. I figured it was a possibility, but I thought: “I’m a sunk cost already. Why would they literally take money out of my pocket?”
I don’t know the actual amount yet, but my new boss told me that the company is going to do the adjustment and he “made it clear that the compensation had to still be attractive,” but I don’t know.
If it’s a small amount, and I can honestly absorb 5 – 10% reduction and still come out ahead. Even from my last job and location, this points to still being a net positive. I should be thankful that I am employed, housed and can take care of my family.
But I’m still annoyed that they are adjusting at all. It’s needlessly greedy on their end. I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am coming from this being such an awesome move and win for me and the company but seeing exactly how little they value me.
It’s really frustrating that, with this company, the guy seems to be in a lose-lose situation.
Stay in his current, higher paying role and he can’t afford to buy a house there.
Move to a different location where they can afford to buy a house, but his salary will drop. It’s not fair.
Let’s see what folks on Reddit had to say about this.
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This person thought that the reduction to his salary was ridiculous.
While others thought he should be looking elsewhere.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an IT employee who thought a ticket was closed, only to hear otherwise from the client’s manager.
While others thought that, at the very least, he should question why his work was worth less now.
Sure you can see the logic in the cost-cutting measure of giving folk working in a lower cost of living area a reduced salary. But that’s simply not how this should work. He could commute to the lower cost of living area whilst still living in the expensive place, or he could live somewhere cheaper while working where he currently does. Frankly, it’s none of his employers’ business where he lives, only that he turns up on time and does his job well. Which clearly he’s doing, since he’s working on figuring out an issue with the business, the very reason that he’s moving to the other area.
So what on earth the business think they’re doing in reducing his salary is crazy, and frankly if this is what they think of him, maybe he should be looking for opportunities elsewhere. Because if he decreases in value because he’s moving to a different office within the same company, then surely his work should be of a lesser quality too, they should expect that. Because honestly, this defies all logic.
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