Honeywell International Inc. (IW 500/28) is snubbing New Jersey and heading south.
The manufacturer plans to move its headquarters to Charlotte, North Carolina, where it sees better opportunities for recruiting executive talent and will be closer to its operating units. About 800 employees will remain at its current offices in Morris Plains, New Jersey, according to a statement Friday.
Honeywell’s move follows other companies that have moved corporate offices out of states with elevated costs of living and high taxes, including General Electric Co.’s relocation of its headquarter to Boston from Connecticut. Those costs were exacerbated by a new law last year that removed state income-tax deductions on federal taxes. North Carolina has a lower state income tax than New Jersey for higher-paid employees.
Honeywell will employ about 750 workers at its new site by the end of 2024, including at least 150 executives from Morris Plains, New Jersey, who will begin moving in the first half of next year. Another 100 people will transfer from its safety products unit, located in Fort Mill, South Carolina. Honeywell called Charlotte a “business- and family-friendly city” as it announced the move.
“Charlotte is a top-10 destination city in the U.S. that will readily enable us to recruit and retain the world-class talent we will need over the long term to support Honeywell’s strategic focus on leading technology and software solutions within our end markets,” Honeywell Chief Executive Officer Darius Adamczyk said in the statement.
The company will begin the move to a temporary location before making a decision on a permanent building.
By Thomas Black
