Relocation Announcements
Inorganic Ventures - Moving from Lakewood , NJ to Christianburg, West Virginia
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
September 24,2008
GMAC Sells Operations to Brookfield Asset Management
Interesting article about the talnet crunch in the Western Economies
GMAC has announced that it has sold its GMAC Home Services to Brookfield Asset Management. The sale includes GMAC Global Relocation Services, GMAC Real Estate and GMAC Home Services Mortgage. Brookfield operates Royal LePage, La Capitale, Johnston and Daniel and Centract in Canada.
Interesting article about the talnet crunch in the Western Economies
In an article entitles "Not What, Not How, but Who? Western Companies Face a Worldwide Talent Crunch" the Wharton School has released an article regarding the results of a study by Wharton and the Boston Consulting Group. They point out there is a conflict between what corporations are trying to do at home and what they are trying to do in the rapidly developing economies.
The full article can be found at
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2056
As California Goes, So Does the Rest of the World May be
In recent action by the City of San Francisco the City commission amended the San Francisco Environment Code by adding Section 421 which requires local employers to offer commuting benefits to encourage employees to use public transit or van pools. Under the ordinance, based on Section 132 of the Tax Code employers and employees are able to reduce the cost of public transit by enabling employers to deduct as a business expense, qualified transportation benefits that the employer provides for employees' personal transportation costs for commuting to and from work, or by allowing employees to elect to purchase qualifying transit passes or reimbursements for vanpool rides with pre-tax dollars.
Acceptable options include Pre-Tax Elections, Employer Paid Benefits,or Employer Paid Transit . The ordinacne goes into affect 120 days following August 12, 2008.
The full article can be found at
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2056
As California Goes, So Does the Rest of the World May be
In recent action by the City of San Francisco the City commission amended the San Francisco Environment Code by adding Section 421 which requires local employers to offer commuting benefits to encourage employees to use public transit or van pools. Under the ordinance, based on Section 132 of the Tax Code employers and employees are able to reduce the cost of public transit by enabling employers to deduct as a business expense, qualified transportation benefits that the employer provides for employees' personal transportation costs for commuting to and from work, or by allowing employees to elect to purchase qualifying transit passes or reimbursements for vanpool rides with pre-tax dollars.
Acceptable options include Pre-Tax Elections, Employer Paid Benefits,or Employer Paid Transit . The ordinacne goes into affect 120 days following August 12, 2008.
Friday, September 19, 2008
September 18,2008
To begin with we send out our wishes for a quick recovery for those of our readership who are in the Houston area and their fellow Texans who are trying to cope with the mayhem imposed by a storm called Ike. Beginning with this posting, we will from time to time post information to the blog from other experts in the field for your use. Hope it will be added value to your business environment.
Human Resource Department Challenges - 2008
I recently joined the HRPN group on Yahoo and I posed the question to the group as to what are the challenges they are facing everyday. Their answers are interesting as to how it would affect our businesses. For your information here was the results of the survey.
The challenges can be divided into four separate groups.
The first challenge deals with diversity issues including working with the various generations in the workplace, religion in the workplace and questions regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act and how to entice the disabled to consider joining our workforce.
The second challenges covers the Human Resource operations function. Here the human resource department is concerned with workplace safety, performance improvement, Return on Investment on the human capital investment, aligning human resources with the business strategy and the protection of corporate and personal data.
The third challenges involves the legal compliance questions. It covers such areas as I-9 reporting, wage and salary issues, age discrimination issues, ADA again, Family Medical Leave Act, and EEO questions.
The fourth and most predominant challenge is how we get our employees engaged in the company. This area is concerned with Work/Life Balance issues, Family Medical Leave, Training and Education in the workplace, health care, recruitment and retention and the concern about the knowledge drain as seasoned workers exit the company.
Watch the Move- It may be detrimental to the family status
In a posting on the internet there was a reference to Powery v. Wells in which a mother moved her child 91 miles away from the estranged father. The court said that the mother could not move with out getting approval from the other parent. This leads us to an addition from the Legal Education Center (diydivorce.fl@gmail.com) regarding things to keep in mind when moving with children who have been in a divorce situation. Here is Pam Wynn's report on this issue:
"Child custody law has been evoloving over the last decade. Even the terms are changing - from custody to child access and timesharing. With a renewed emphasis on keeping both paretn's involved in their children's lives, many states have changed the rules about when a divorced parent is permitted to relocate a child. If you are a divorced parent considering an employment relocation, here are five legal trends you should be aware of:
One- If your custody order does not cover how future moves will be decided, your state may have a procedure in the law, there will be court opinions that outline the factors a court will examine when considering a custody relocation request.
Two- If your state has a mandatory procedure and you move without following it, you may be held in contempt of court and have other sanctions imposed. Sometimes your violation can be used against you in court and can even be a reason to change custody. It can also be a reason for the judge to order you to pay the other attorney's fees and costs. And you could be ordered to pay all the child's travel expenses for visitation while the case is pending. The judge can even order you to return the child to the area permanently in some states.
Three- If the other parent objects, you will have to ask the court for permission to move. The court will have a hearing to determine if it is in the child's best interest to move. You may not be permitted to move the child in the meanwhile. With typical delays, it could be months before a hearing is held.
Four- With the increasingly child-focused laws being passed, stability int he child's life will become a more important factor in court decisions. Recent cases in Florida have supported changing custody when the judge found that the relocation was not int he child's best interest.
Five-There is a national movement to pass legislation that permits courts to order computer-assisted or virtual parent-child contact. Currently there are four states with virtual visitation laws- Utha, Florida, Texas and Wisconsin. While it is not a substitute for in-person contact, virtual contact can help parents stay connected to their children in ways a telephone never could. If your state does not have a law on virtual visitation, each judge will determine whehter to permit such contact.
If you are working with a divorced transferee or are a divorced aprent considering a relocation, be aware of these legal trends and get information specific to your state. If you do not follow the procedures, the sanctions can be severe if you relocate a child."
Sign of the times
Cartus has announced that it has reduced its workforce by 70 jobs across the operations due to the nature of the housing market at the current time.
Relocations
CSC - Moving from Camp Hill. PA to Fairmont , W. Va
Church and Dwight -Moving from New Jeresy to York, PA
Flanders Corporation - Moving corporate offices from St Petersburg, FL to Washington, NC
Brokers Merger Operations
GMAC Metro Brokers and Oprandi Realty have merged their operations in North Georgia under the GMAC Metro Broker umbrella. The merger adds 40 real estate agents to the Metro Broker agent staff.
Human Resource Department Challenges - 2008
I recently joined the HRPN group on Yahoo and I posed the question to the group as to what are the challenges they are facing everyday. Their answers are interesting as to how it would affect our businesses. For your information here was the results of the survey.
The challenges can be divided into four separate groups.
The first challenge deals with diversity issues including working with the various generations in the workplace, religion in the workplace and questions regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act and how to entice the disabled to consider joining our workforce.
The second challenges covers the Human Resource operations function. Here the human resource department is concerned with workplace safety, performance improvement, Return on Investment on the human capital investment, aligning human resources with the business strategy and the protection of corporate and personal data.
The third challenges involves the legal compliance questions. It covers such areas as I-9 reporting, wage and salary issues, age discrimination issues, ADA again, Family Medical Leave Act, and EEO questions.
The fourth and most predominant challenge is how we get our employees engaged in the company. This area is concerned with Work/Life Balance issues, Family Medical Leave, Training and Education in the workplace, health care, recruitment and retention and the concern about the knowledge drain as seasoned workers exit the company.
Watch the Move- It may be detrimental to the family status
In a posting on the internet there was a reference to Powery v. Wells in which a mother moved her child 91 miles away from the estranged father. The court said that the mother could not move with out getting approval from the other parent. This leads us to an addition from the Legal Education Center (diydivorce.fl@gmail.com) regarding things to keep in mind when moving with children who have been in a divorce situation. Here is Pam Wynn's report on this issue:
"Child custody law has been evoloving over the last decade. Even the terms are changing - from custody to child access and timesharing. With a renewed emphasis on keeping both paretn's involved in their children's lives, many states have changed the rules about when a divorced parent is permitted to relocate a child. If you are a divorced parent considering an employment relocation, here are five legal trends you should be aware of:
One- If your custody order does not cover how future moves will be decided, your state may have a procedure in the law, there will be court opinions that outline the factors a court will examine when considering a custody relocation request.
Two- If your state has a mandatory procedure and you move without following it, you may be held in contempt of court and have other sanctions imposed. Sometimes your violation can be used against you in court and can even be a reason to change custody. It can also be a reason for the judge to order you to pay the other attorney's fees and costs. And you could be ordered to pay all the child's travel expenses for visitation while the case is pending. The judge can even order you to return the child to the area permanently in some states.
Three- If the other parent objects, you will have to ask the court for permission to move. The court will have a hearing to determine if it is in the child's best interest to move. You may not be permitted to move the child in the meanwhile. With typical delays, it could be months before a hearing is held.
Four- With the increasingly child-focused laws being passed, stability int he child's life will become a more important factor in court decisions. Recent cases in Florida have supported changing custody when the judge found that the relocation was not int he child's best interest.
Five-There is a national movement to pass legislation that permits courts to order computer-assisted or virtual parent-child contact. Currently there are four states with virtual visitation laws- Utha, Florida, Texas and Wisconsin. While it is not a substitute for in-person contact, virtual contact can help parents stay connected to their children in ways a telephone never could. If your state does not have a law on virtual visitation, each judge will determine whehter to permit such contact.
If you are working with a divorced transferee or are a divorced aprent considering a relocation, be aware of these legal trends and get information specific to your state. If you do not follow the procedures, the sanctions can be severe if you relocate a child."
Sign of the times
Cartus has announced that it has reduced its workforce by 70 jobs across the operations due to the nature of the housing market at the current time.
Relocations
CSC - Moving from Camp Hill. PA to Fairmont , W. Va
Church and Dwight -Moving from New Jeresy to York, PA
Flanders Corporation - Moving corporate offices from St Petersburg, FL to Washington, NC
Brokers Merger Operations
GMAC Metro Brokers and Oprandi Realty have merged their operations in North Georgia under the GMAC Metro Broker umbrella. The merger adds 40 real estate agents to the Metro Broker agent staff.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
September 4, 2008
Hope you all had a great labor day weekend. It is hard to believe we are into the final throws of the year. Where has time gone. They say it flies when you are having fun. This entry has several items for your information from promotions, to the release of some new research which has an impact on relocation efforts. While you are taking in the impact of the information we get to watch three storms off in the Atlantic. Maybe it is time to think about moving out of the tropics! Just kidding I think.
21st Annual Global Relocation Conference
Orion Mobility will be hosting it's Global Relocation Confernece in White Plains, NY September 22-24, 2008.
OneSource Relocation Promotion
OneSource Relocation has announced the promotion of Michael Nimer to the position of Chief Operating Officer
Fastest Growing Real Firms Merge Operations
21st Annual Global Relocation Conference
Orion Mobility will be hosting it's Global Relocation Confernece in White Plains, NY September 22-24, 2008.
OneSource Relocation Promotion
OneSource Relocation has announced the promotion of Michael Nimer to the position of Chief Operating Officer
Fastest Growing Real Firms Merge Operations
Fort Collins Real Estate and Keller Williams of Northern Colorado merged their operations and will be named Keller Williams of Northern Colorado with 215 agents.
New Research has important Implications for Relocation of Executives
In a post dated September 3, 2008 Knowledge at Wharton from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania presented a summary of a study of the results of surveys of employees in two different insurance companies. Their findings presented the idea that hiring new employees from outside the company brings problems due to the difficulty in adapting to the new corporate culture. The full details of the research can be found at either http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?/articleid=2041 or at
http://www-management.wharton.upenn.edu/rothbard/document/Unpacking%20Prior%20Experience_ORG%20SCIENCE_11-15-07.pdf.
New Research has important Implications for Relocation of Executives
In a post dated September 3, 2008 Knowledge at Wharton from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania presented a summary of a study of the results of surveys of employees in two different insurance companies. Their findings presented the idea that hiring new employees from outside the company brings problems due to the difficulty in adapting to the new corporate culture. The full details of the research can be found at either http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?/articleid=2041 or at
http://www-management.wharton.upenn.edu/rothbard/document/Unpacking%20Prior%20Experience_ORG%20SCIENCE_11-15-07.pdf.
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