If Marine Atlantic decided to uproot its head office from St. John's and relocate it to either Port aux Basques, N.L., or North Sydney, N.S., it's likely the Crown corporation would do so without the people currently occupying senior roles in Newfoundland and Labrador's capital city.

Most, if not all, of the 20 staff currently working in St. John's would leave their jobs instead of moving.

That was just one of the conclusions of a final report that examined the business case for consolidating operations, and potentially shifting Marine Atlantic's head office to one of the corporation's port communities.

As a result, there will be no changes to the current structure, says Marine Atlantic president and CEO, Murray Hupman.

"We see the risk of doing that type of move to be too significant," Hupman told CBC News in a telephone interview Wednesday afternoon.

While stopping short of nixing the concept, the report detailed some serious risks associated with such a move.

One of the potential consequences? The possibility the Crown corporation might not be able to fulfil its constitutional mandate because of the challenges of recruiting and retaining highly qualified executives, managers and other specialists.

"The reality is that, in general, it is easier to recruit these types of positions to larger centres," the report reads.

The report was initiated by the Marine Atlantic board of directors, and completed by a consulting firm called HDR Inc. in February 2020.

It was obtained by CBC News through an access-to-information request.

St. John's staff will not relocate

The review explored two options: maintaining the head office in St. John's, where it's been located for more than two decades, or a full or partial consolidation of shore-based administration offices in Port aux Basques or North Sydney.

The final report did not make a definitive recommendation.

But one of the most eye-raising findings? When interviewed by the report's authors, staff in St. John's said they would not relocate.

"Many have a spouse with a career in St. John's and or/children that they would not want to move from schools/activities," the report reads.

One of the common themes from executive and management staff? That Marine Atlantic "will not be able to effectively recruit and retain talent in the port communities."