Last month Tara and her family moved into a new home in rural Dorset after 12 years as expats in Singapore. Her banker husband had got a job back in the UK and within six weeks she "moved mountains" to extricate themselves from one life and create another — most urgently, a home to rent and school places for their three children. The lure of the dream expat life had faded, says Tara, 38.
"Trapped on an island by the draconian quarantine rules meant that ease of travel — one of the main reasons for being there — no longer existed," she says, referring to the 14-day period that inbound travellers are required to stay in a government-assigned hotel, at a cost equivalent to £1,127 a person. "The rise in anti-foreigner sentiment was another factor," she says, which she blames on increased competition for jobs caused by the economic downturn. She is not the only economic migrant — someone who moves abroad to take up a job opportunity and is commonly referred to as an "expat" — opting to return home due to the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
For Nina Hobson, 38, a British-born expat who has lived in 13 countries, the "chaos" of the pandemic might force her home. She’s in the middle of relocating from Santiago in Chile to Quito in Ecuador.
"Eighteen months ago, we had planned to move to Australia with one of our three daughters, but we decided it was too risky because of the structure of their healthcare system and ongoing air travel restrictions," says Sabine, 54. "The possibility of another wave of coronavirus means we will stay in Europe now."
She says that even in normal circumstances, moving back home can be tough for expats, even when it is voluntary. "It’s a reverse culture shock. When you move to a new place you are getting a constant adrenaline rush from new experiences or cultural differences every day. Everything is fresh and exciting. But when you go home everything is perhaps too familiar. There’s nothing to surprise." Her words echo those of F Scott Fitzgerald’s Benjamin Button. In the film of the book, he says: "It’s a funny thing coming home. Nothing changes. Everything looks the same, feels the same, even smells the same. You realise what’s changed is you."
Workers from Ireland, New Zealand, the US and Germany have been rethinking their living arrangements. But whether it is elective or unwanted, repatriation can be a tough experience.
"Many multinational companies are questioning whether they need to recruit from abroad now — and pay the hefty expat relocation packages for whole families — when they could instead use local people," she says.
In 2016, Hong Kong had about 690,000 expats — roughly 9.5 per cent of its population — according to census data. But after rising political tensions between the US and China, and the social unrest caused by the controversial extradition bill and new security law, the economic fallout from Covid-19 has been the "final gut punch" for expats thinking of leaving, says Simon Smith, senior director at Savills Asia & Pacific Research. "Many expats are involved in the financial services sector, which has been hit hard," he says. "Hong Kong is a very expensive place to live if you haven’t got work." Hallett Mobbs agrees. "When you move abroad you are welcomed into an expat bubble, through social groups or the international school, but when you arrive back home you feel as if you’ve been dropped like a hot potato." Tara doesn’t feel quite so alienated. "I can’t wait to go to Waitrose," she says. "I’ve found out a few other people from Singapore have moved to the area too
Questions:
Taking the case study scenario into consideration, discuss the complexities faced by expats recruited for an international assignment?
Critically analyse specific International HRM activities used to resolve the complexities faced by expats.
