Need advice ASAP, job interview, relocation, fast!

[Janeway]

Husband has an in-person job interview in another state in a few days. We would love to relocate, but that particular part of the country was not one of the areas we had in mind. I tried to be open minded, but as I researched cost of living, including housing costs, it became flustering. Then I said that I guess if he makes X more a year, then we could do it. Husband says he does not think they will offer him X more a year. I felt bad about it then because it seems as if this is just going to be a bad move.

 

Now, the travel agency booked his travel for the interview and they made a mistake. Not kidding. They booked him to fly out Saturday morning and apparently, could not get flights out to return Monday night, so they switched it to Tuesday morning. My husband was unsure if this was ok because he was certain the company said they would only pay for 2 nights. He emailed HR at that company and they said my husband has to pay for the third night. My husband called the travel agency back and told them that they made a mistake and need to switch it to be 2 nights. They say they will not change it unless my husband pays them $200 for a change fee. To top it off, this is a huge company, think online retailer we all know. Yet, they make my husband pay everything up front for the travel and they reimburse him. What if my husband does not take the job? It is sounding more and more like this job might not even pay enough anyway. I would love for us to relocate, but not to a HCOL area like that.

 

I think this is a huge huge sign that my husband should not go. He is thinking the same thing. Please advise. I am so torn! He is considering cancelling the interview. Based on how the company is handling the travel, we are not feeling a high level of confidence for what it would be like to work there or how they will actually handle the relocation.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Janeway

[East Coast Sue]

BTDT. Yes, it's a red flag. Proceed with caution. More details by PM if you'd want to discuss. It's so hard when you really need a job and I have much sympathy for you b/c it's a tough decision.

[regentrude]

I think the practice of reimbursing travel is pretty standard.

The problem is with the travel agent who messed up and did not book what your DH requested (why use a travel agent in the first place and not do it himself?) I assume your DH gave the travel agent in writing what he wanted them to book - so that's what I would address.

I don't think the onus is on the company to pay for three nights, unless it is a two day interview - in that case it would be reasonable. But for a one day interview, I don't think so.

 

I would never turn down an interview unless applying from secure employment.

Edited December 8, 2016 by regentrude

[EKS]

Did the company tell the travel agent to book the trip?  If so, it seems to me that the additional night is between the company and the travel agent.  If it is the company's travel agent, did your husband tell the HR person that the travel agency booked the flight for Tuesday without getting approval?  Or did he just ask if they would pay for three nights?

Edited December 8, 2016 by EKS

[MEmama]

It's not unusual for companies to not pay for interview travel. DH once flew to eastern Canada for an interview--we were living in Ohio, and it was much less expensive and easier for all of us to stay in Toronto while he flew out from there, so DS and I had a mini vacation in Toronto while DH interviewed.

 

COL is important, of course, but not everything.

 

That your travel agent messed up is another, separate issue. If it's their mistake they need to fix it. Why can't your DH find his own flight and hotel and skip the agency?

[Janeway]

The agency chose to book it like this on their own. I do not know if they would have allowed my husband to book the flights on his own.

[Code Lyoko]

The agency chose to book it like this on their own. I do not know if they would have allowed my husband to book the flights on his own.

So the company that wants to interview your husband booked the flight through a travel agency but made an error?  And the agency is dealing with your husband directly, not through the company that asked them to make the booking?

 

If the company that is doing the interview booked the flight, and the agency they hired made the mistake, why isn't the company dealing with the agency?

 

 

ETA:  Or am I totally misunderstanding?

 

FWIW, a lot of companies reimburse afterwards instead of paying up front.  That isn't necessarily a red flag.  The issue with the travel agency is a separate issue from whether this company is worth the effort to interview with.

 

COL is definitely something to consider.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Code Lyoko

[Insertcreativenamehere]

If it's the online retailer I'm thinking, I'd proceed with caution. We relocated for one and it turned out to be a very bad move for us. While we liked that general part of the country, we had to live an hour away from DH's work to find affordable housing. The job (an IT position) was also extremely stressful -- it was a cutthroat environment with little regard for family or life outside of work. We ended up leaving after just a few months and had to pay back the relocation expenses the company had paid for us to move there. 

Edited December 8, 2016 by poikar

[Janeway]

So the company that wants to interview your husband booked the flight through a travel agency but made an error?  And the agency is dealing with your husband directly, not through the company that asked them to make the booking?

 

If the company that is doing the interview booked the flight, and the agency they hired made the mistake, why isn't the company dealing with the agency?

That is what I think. I think the travel agency messed up, they need to swallow this.

[FaithManor]

If you husband booked this on his credit card for reimbursement, then call your Visa/Mastercard. I had Delta airlines mess me over by changing a flight time after I booked it that would have gotten me into Paris late, making me eat a night of hotel bill. Delta wouldn't do a thing until I called my Visa company. They told Delta that they would get me on a different flight with a very similar arrival time, amenable to me for layovers, etc. OR they would reverse the charges and Delta would get nothing so I could take my business elsewhere.

 

You'd be surprised how happy Delta became to suddenly get me a good flight with no charges for the changes. Worked well.

 

So that is where I would start. This is the travel agency's fault, but they probably need to be threatened with no money in order to get them to move on the issue. They bank on people taking it on the chin.

[Arcadia]

Regarding the third night issue, it really depends on whether your husband wants to go for the interview for the experience. If it is a Monday interview, the agent should have booked a Sunday flight and fly back on Tuesday morning. The interviewers may want to take him out for dinner so Monday night flight might not have been a good idea anyway.

 

If it is the company I am guessing, there are many employees from another cutthroat company with the same initial that is looking to jump ship there. My hubby's tech employer is also doing campus recruitment soon so that would add on more competitors for tech jobs.

 

That your travel agent messed up is another, separate issue. If it's their mistake they need to fix it. Why can't your DH find his own flight and hotel and skip the agency?

One of the tech companies I worked for would only reimburse if travel bookings were through the travel agents in the company's approved list. That was to prevent under table kick backs like booking through a friend.

 

My hubby's current employer loves Hyatt so that is where we stay at every business trip even though the Marriott next door has nicer suites at a lower price.

[FaithManor]

Companies are wonky about this stuff. When ds went to Germany, his employer made him book his travel with their agency on his credit card for reimbursement. We could get a far better fare, flight time, and hotel room rate on expedia than what the company agency provided which would have saved the company money in the end, but no deal. Okay fine. But I feel like in that instance it should be on a company Visa, not my personal one. Nope. Had to go on our card. They took two months to reimburse him so we ended up paying interest on it since we didn't have the money to pay it off. And no, they were unwilling to pay us for the interest. GRRRR.....

 

Dh is with a different company now and the last time they wanted him to travel he said, " If it goes on my credit card, I am in control of the flight, hotel, everything. You can set a budget for the trip. If not, then it goes on a company credit card. Otherwise, get someone else or I'll just do some work from home and work evenings to coach the team over there online instead of in person. Skype works." So sometimes they opt to send him and book it at their own expense, sometimes they have him sleep days, work nights for a couple of weeks to straighten it out in a different time zone with skype. We no longer put company travel on our credit card.

 

But when one is trying to find a job, you have to follow their rules. Again, start with your credit card company and dispute the charges with them based on travel agency fault. Once they become involved, chances are the travel agency will cave.

[Lanny]

I would cancel the interview.  The potential employer should pay *all* of his travel costs, up front.  I wonder if they still have the round trip domestic airline fares in the USA where if you stay over a Saturday night, you get a much lower round trip fare?  If that's the case, they are really being cheap.  I do remember going down to Florida to do an in person interview for a job assignment in Germany, and I do seem to remember submitting an Expense Report to them, to get reimbursed for  a couple of meals and parking my car in DFW Airport, but they had paid for the airline ticket before I left TX.      If they are trying to screw him, before he goes to work for them, that, IMO, is not a good sign.  Also, the fact that it is a much higher COL area and that your DH does not think they will offer him a salary that begins to make up for the COL differential, I would just thank them, profusely, for their interest, and wish them well.   Frequently, it is best to go with "Chemistry".

 

Their Travel Agency might have made a mistake, or, they may have done *exactly* what the instructions they received from their Client told them to do.   If he goes, he should be prepared to pay for meals, parking and other incidentals and then (hopefully) they will reimburse him for those expenses, but they should pay for the airline ticket and hotel, without him being billed for those things and praying that they (eventually) reimburse him.  . GL to him and to your family!

 

ETA: I am  very confused now, about who selected that Travel Agency. The potential employer or your DH?  If it was your DH, then IMO the Travel Agency should get a polite but severe letter of complaint from your DH and you should never do business with them again..  The reservation details (fare, etc.) should have been discussed with your DH, before it was in concrete and subject to a Change or Cancellation Fee. We ,make our own travel reservations, online, and I have my wife and my DD double check *EVERYTHING*, before we "click to buy".  The big advantage to doing that is that hopefully we eliminate errors, such as when my wife booked, online, theater reservations for the premier showing of a movie, that she thought was at 1201 Noon.  Turned out to be 1201 Midnight. They went to the Midnight Premier...  I didn't go to that movie...  If the potential employer selected the Travel Agency, the Travel Agency probably has guidelines from their Client, about what they will or will not pay for. This is close to Christmas, so flights are filling up now and the fares are higher now. Starting approximately  January 15th, airline fares will drop.  

Edited December 8, 2016 by Lanny

[Tess in the Burbs]

Dh had to pay for a flight trip out of pocket for an interview before.  They would reimburse after the interview, paperwork was done on site/signed so it was back to him within a week.  Annoying for sure, but not uncommon.  The travel agent thing...is it the company agent?  Then it seems to be in their issues to fix.  If your dh called them, then it's his issue to fix.  

 

If he has real concerns about the interview and salary/COL, why not ask the interviewer to find out the job salary range and just explain before you make such a large trip, you want to be sure this position is something you can consider.    Dh interviewed years ago for a job we were told wouldn't pay more than X.  And no relocation.  Dh needed more than X, but they would reimburse the travel for the interview.  So he went.   IN the end they paid Y and a bonus for relocation.  Don't stress too much about salary, if they want him, they will pay.  As for COL....you can estimate all you want, but tack on 20% for things you don't know about like car taxes, etc that isn't the basic stuff.  We knew moving here it was a much higher COL(had lived here a decade earlier), but gosh, I swear things go up in cost here every hour.  I keep a record of my household goods shopping from walmart/target and the prices change every month....and not 10 cents, but sometimes a full dollar per item.  Salary can't keep up with that increase!  

We always make a list of things that have to happen before deciding to make a big move for a job.  As long as everything on the list is covered we go for it.  And I've had some crazy lists before...like higher salary and relocation.  

[Janeway]

I would cancel the interview.  The potential employer should pay *all* of his travel costs, up front.  I wonder if they still have the round trip domestic airline fares in the USA where if you stay over a Saturday night, you get a much lower round trip fare?  If that's the case, they are really being cheap.  I do remember going down to Florida to do an in person interview for a job assignment in Germany, and I do seem to remember submitting an Expense Report to them, to get reimbursed for  a couple of meals and parking my car in DFW Airport, but they had paid for the airline ticket before I left TX.      If they are trying to screw him, before he goes to work for them, that, IMO, is not a good sign.  Also, the fact that it is a much higher COL area and that your DH does not think they will offer him a salary that begins to make up for the COL differential, I would just thank them, profusely, for their interest, and wish them well.   Frequently, it is best to go with "Chemistry".   The Travel Agency might have made a mistake, or, they may have done *exactly* what the instructions they received from their Client told them to do.   If he goes, he should be prepared to pay for meals, parking and other incidentals and then (hopefully) they will reimburse him for those expenses, but they should pay for the airline ticket and hotel, without him being billed for those things and praying that they (eventually) reimburse him.  . GL to him and to your family!

He emailed them and turned down the job. They then emailed him and asked him to please come out anyway. He didn't answer yet and the hiring manager called him to discuss it with him. They offered to pay for the additional costs after all. He said no, thank you. They kept asking if this was about the travel issue and he said no. I wish he would have told them it was about the travel issue because they should know for the future hiring people. 

[gardenmom5]

The agency chose to book it like this on their own. I do not know if they would have allowed my husband to book the flights on his own.

The onus is on the travel agent since they messed up, the agent needs to fix it.

[Lanny]

@Janeway  Yes, although you have other extremely valid concerns (especially the much higher COL and it being in an area you are not enthused about living in)  IF it was THEIR Travel Agency who made those Travel arrangements, I WOULD have told the Hiring Manager about that, and that it left a very bad taste in my mouth.  They got off to a very bad start because of that.  It could be that in a month or so, after the holidays, the Hiring Manager will call your DH again and that they will be much more accommodating. Or, you may never hear from them again.  You must be sure that nothing is ambiguous and that everything is in writing. Verbal contracts are not worth the paper they are not written on. I would want them to pay, upfront, for the airline fare and the hotel and I would expect to (eventually) be reimbursed for out of pocket costs (meals, tips and parking his car at the airport).   If the interview was scheduled for next week, everyone in the potential employers offices and in the airline and hotel will be going crazy, so close to Christmas.  IMO this is not a good time to be doing this. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Janeway--let me pm you back channel. :)