Commuters shun the city to find a work/life balance

Large corporations relocating their headquarters outside the City of London have spawned a growing trend in daily travel with the ìreverse commuteî.

A survey by Robert Walters, one of the worldís largest professional recruitment consultancies, shows that 70% of City of London workers would turn their backs on the Capital to commute to the greener pastures of the Home Counties.

Daniel Ladd-Hudson, Director of Robert Walters Surrey and Sussex division, says:

ìOver the last eight months, Surrey and Sussex have witnessed a number of large corporations relocate to the area to reduce costs and increase office space; this is creating exciting opportunities especially for finance professionals who reap the benefits of working in a modern environment close to London without having to sacrifice their city salary.î

Mr Ladd-Hudson says working outside the City of London no longer means taking a pay cut. He adds that workers making the move from the city to the suburbs were once hit with a 15%-20% fall in salary, but that pay differential has now moved to less than 5%.

The reverse commuter lives in London but travels to the suburbs to work each day, and the exodus from the city to the suburbs is expected to continue to grow as more major companies set up shop outside of London and employees seek a better work/life balance.

Companies can benefit from moving out of London by consolidating a number of smaller offices under one modern spacious roof, which is more cost effective. Employees also reap the benefits of working in a modern environment close to London without having to sacrifice their city salary.

Some of the major corporations that have their head offices in Surrey and Sussex include home builder Berkeley Group, tourism group First Choice, security firm Group 4 Securicor and food producer Dairy Crest.

Oil giant ExxonMobil is set to relocate its operations from London to Leatherhead early next year.

Sian Mikkelsen, Human Resources Recruitment Manager at ExxonMobil, says the move is part of a shift from a number of office locations in London to an existing super-site within commuting distance of the capital.

Mrs. Mikkelsen says: ìExxonMobilís Leatherhead site is a modern office space which will accommodate more than one thousand employees.î

Twickenham resident Wouter Claasen says he is attracted to working in Surrey by the short commute and the abundance of career opportunities in the area provided by the growing number of corporations relocating their headquarters.

Mr Claasen saves time and money by commuting 17 miles to work in Surrey in just 35 minutes. ìMy car payments and fuel every month are less than a monthly travel card,î he says. ìYou get paid London rates but you have more time, and time is a valued commodity.î