Due to the prolonged isolation period, many have decided to pack their bags and relocate. There are many factors at play here. One is that the closure of establishments and the need to comply with social distancing protocols have stripped big cities of their appeal. City dwellers and those who moved to these cities for work and urban life are now longing for a life in the suburbs.
There, they can live in houses with larger spaces, as opposed to the cramped living quarters of big city condominiums that they’ve grown tired of. Another factor is that the pandemic has left many of these people working remotely, so their home’s distance from their workplace is no longer important.
Where would you move to?
Some regions in the United States have fared worse than others during the pandemic. For instance, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Kentucky have been reported to have more layoffs than other states. Before you call movers and car transport services, know what you’ll be getting into in your new region.
The remote work routine may stick around for a while
Since companies had to close their workplaces to prevent the virus from spreading, they put their employees on remote work to stay in business. Because of this, they are investing more in the resources that will make remote work more accessible. These include cloud services and business communication platforms. It’s because of this that the remote work trend could last.
Freelancing, which has seen an increase in popularity as a source of income during the pandemic, can also easily be done remotely. This is also partly due to the accessibility of freelance work platforms such as Fiverr, UpWork, and TaskRabbit.
Related: Don’t Make These 6 Biggest Mistakes If You’re Working From Home
Other financial considerations
In some cases, relocating might affect your pay in your current job. For instance, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that in light of the current remote work scheme, his employees would be free to relocate during the pandemic. However, the catch is that salaries would be adjusted to suit the new area that the worker would be living in. So if a Facebook worker moves to a less expensive area, their pay would be slashed as the company deemed appropriate. Make sure to check with your boss if moving would affect your pay.
If worse comes to worst, would you be able to find a job in the new town?
Do you have the sufficient skill set to look for another job? Consider taking online classes to bolster your resume. Look at the sectors that are looking to hire and what occupations are in-demand at the moment.
The rapid advancement of technology during the pandemic has stripped many workers of their jobs during the pandemic. Retail giant Amazon has robots in its warehouse sorting, packing, and shipping orders. More and more fast-food chains are investing in robots to work as chefs and cashiers. In medicine, both robots and artificial intelligence (AI) systems are being employed as medical assistants to promote social distancing between healthcare workers and their patients.
If anything, this automation invasion highlights, even more, the importance of expanding and sharpening one’s skill set. According to the World Economic Forum, the jobs of the future are those that will require a combination of soft and hard skills.
If you are in a minority group, don’t expect to have luck on your side when it comes to job hunting and job security. Minority groups such as women and people of color have been hit harder by the pandemic than non-minority groups.
Relocating is a decision that you shouldn’t take lightly. But relocating during a pandemic has even more factors that you need to consider. For one thing, moving to a less expensive area may not promise less strain on your budget because your company might trim your pay. You also have to think about whether you have a sufficient skillset to look for another job should you ever lose your current one.