Employee Requests to Relocate: 4 Employer Considerations
As a huge swath of the Canadian workforce began working entirely remotely in 2020, employers increasingly considered employee requests to relocate. Some employees were looking to return to their home province or country to be with loved ones. Others were looking for a change of scenery and saw an opportunity to do so. Whatever the reason, offering employees the opportunity to take advantage of work-from-home arrangements by working from their chosen location can be a welcome perk. Some employers have even included guidelines for relocation as part of remote work policies.
There are a few key things an employer should consider when approving employee relocation requests.
When the vast majority of the Canadian workforce suddenly transitioned to working from home in 2020, managers were concerned about employee productivity. Most employees believed remote work increased productivity, while managers believed the opposite. 
As a fully virtual firm since 2017, we are big remote working fans. We recognize that, as a result of the pandemic, most work environments have come to accept and adopt remote working With the recent public sector strike, remote work is once again a hot topic. This time however, the conversation has taken a new and interesting direction as the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) seeks to enshrine the right to remote work in new collective agreements for the hundreds of thousands of workers it represents. 
