Been offered an assignment to Guyana. Spoke to some trusted colleagues that have worked there or know people that work there but they haven’t filled me with confidence about moving my family there or even working there.
What do you know about the location for expating?
Don't forget to factor in the cost of deworming pills. Tapeworms, pinworms, we have it all down here in Guyana!
Funnily enough I was working in Dallas with some Imperial expats (either CL29 or exec) during 2020 when the expat program was changed with no communication. And one of them didn't even notice the expat $ allowance had been dropped until her checks started bouncing. If that's how the company treats its hipo execs who sit in Dallas I can only imagine how they treat them when they're in 3rd world countries.
XOM you have a moral obligation to invest in early STEM education, especially employees & expats! Do better!
Instead of leaving the country, first consider leaving the company
I was shocked at ExxonMobil's support during the covid issues of 2020. I thought they would do everything possible to either provide a vacine or allow you to return to the US to get vacinated or even facilitate the process to allow you to leave the country. They did nothing. The order was to just stay in your country and wait for your country to get free vacines donated from western countries.
And then they started cutting the packages.
This was truly an eye opener for me about ExxonMobil's level of commitment to the expat.
@OP Personally, I wouldn’t go to the third world for Exxon or any other private company. I used to deploy to he-l-holes like that because I was under orders. That isn’t the case anymore.
If you’re considering taking the assignment, ask about their DoS protocols and make damn sure you’re being compensated to the level of the added risk.
If you do find yourself in a worst-case scenario down there, you can expect Exxon to be about as much help to you there as it is to you here.
The answer is NO.
The company used to setup GREAT expat locations in African, etc. It required establishing a safe community, working to ensure adequate schooling, etc.
We have done NONE of that in Guyana. You're spread out across town (no central compound) and we've done nothing to address schooling. If your kid is over 12, then you're sending them to boarding school. If they're under, then they're getting a substandard education.
The answer is NO.
The company used to setup GREAT expat locations in African, etc. It required establishing a safe community, working to ensure adequate schooling, etc.
We have done NONE of that in Guyana. You're spread out across town (no central compound) and we've done nothing to address schooling. If your kid is over 12, then you're sending them to boarding school. If they're under, then they're getting a substandard education.
Try living in Midland or Carlsbad if you want the company to pay for top notch education...NOT
First, I don’t know that all locations are impacted by stingy education allowances. Some are. You will need to test this.
Second, shame on ExxonMobil. We should be enabling our children to pursue S.T.E.M. careers. Do you know how important consistent curriculum is to doing this? Very important! Slip one math level, and your child likely feels too far behind to try for an engineering degree in college. An European in US? Moving back to Europe, your whole future may depend on success in your country’s exam scheme. Does a U.S. public school provide you the right support? Probably not.
Yes, international school in home-country curriculum is ENORMOUSLY expensive. But people and companies pay it for exactly these reasons.
If you are asking an employee and their family to move for the company, the financial burden of a home-country education should not fall on the employee. Many lesser employers pay to enable attendance at these schools. It really is awful.
The people making decisions that impact US expats are from third world countries and don't have an idea of the US standard of living. As long as you are not starving or worrying about social unrest, according to TMO, you are living a "comfortable enough" life.
I’ve been wondering why the company is cutting benefits for education of children. I thought the policy was to provide a similar standard of living plus an uplift to incentivize. Surely providing a good education is part of the stated goal of providing a similar standard of living. Does the HR decider have cats and dogs and no children? Do they hate traditional families and children?
The schools in Guyana are not good
First ask for an ECS to see what your numbers will look like.
Guyana is a decent uplift from the USA but if you have family I would be cautious. Exxon doesn't pay for schools anymore and they cut the health insurance benefits for expat families.
You also need to see what your housing numbers will look like because they can severely impact your take home pay.
The loss of several other benefits associated with expating makes it a decision that you really need to consider in detail (esp if you have children involved).