In a sign of continuing uncertainty about the global economy, multinational companies will be sending fewer employees on international assignments than in past years, according to the latest Global Relocation Trends Survey Report, published annually by Brookfield Global Relocation Services (Brookfield GRS) (http://www.brookfieldgrs.com).

What's more, when companies do relocate employees for both short and long-term overseas assignments these days, they are opting to dispatch older and more experienced employees because they present the least risk of assignment failure. In fact, just 9 percent of expatriates were 20 to 29 years old - the lowest in the survey's 14 year history. It appears that developmental assignments are declining in the current economic climate as companies opt to send more experienced employees.

The worldwide survey of 180 multinational firms revealed widespread wariness and pessimism: More than two-thirds (67 percent) of corporations surveyed said they will either decrease the number of employees they plan to relocate in 2009 or, at most, maintain current expatriate levels.

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