While there will be many different reasons why an employee may be either very excited about your plans to move office, there will also be some anxiety and legitimate concerns. Each will need to be heard and addressed.
Your human resources department will also need to be aware of what people are saying. There will also be some legal considerations which your HR department will need to be involved with, and may even lead to them not joining you at your new premises.
Contract issues
It’s important to give your employees time to process the impending change.
Your employees’ contracts will impact the length of notice necessary to give. This will be something that you’ll need to factor into the move. This will usually be the same length of time your employee would have to give should they hand in their notice.
Some employees will need to be offered a relocation package. Who in your staff do you consider to be irreplaceable? It will be far cheaper to offer them compensation when relocating than recruiting a replacement.
Your move may also impact your employees’ travel arrangements, which will need to be considered in their relocation package. Will their train route train? Will they need to buy a car? Can your expenses cover everything?
How far are you moving?
The further your company intends to move, the busier your HR department will be. Some employees may be unable or plain unwilling to travel to a new location. This could lead to requests to work from home, with little-no time in the office, resignations or the tough decision of redundancies. Of course, if enough people are coming to you with these sort of concerns, it could be worth reconsidering whether your move is worth it.
Handling redundancies
You may find that your move comes with a restructure, which may mean that some roles no longer exist. While you may wish to offer employees alternative roles, it doesn’t mean they’ll take them. Redundancy is never an easy part of the job and the terms of an employees’ contract will need full consideration, including the notice period.
Avoiding discrimination
While this may not be the first thing you think about when planning your move, if you are found to be discriminating against a group of employees, you could find yourself in big trouble. To avoid this, you will need to ensure that your relocation doesn’t affect a group of people; that staff transport issues are taken into account; the needs of disabled employees are taken into account.
Call in the professionals
The best way to ensure that you are adhering to employment law requirements is to work with a HR professional.
And of course, if you are going to move and you would like to ensure it goes smoothly, we are on hand to help.