Pets and Work
“No one ever told me I’d have to be a zoo-keeper when I went into Human Resources.” – Ellen Cooper.
In 2020 we introduced readers to workplace situations and issues, and the HR professionals who tackle them, in our book They Did What? What are Maryanne Robertson, Kyle Greene and their colleagues tackling now?
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Kyle and I were sitting at the table in my office, preparing to review policy issues as part of our annual employee handbook review.
“You’ll never believe what I heard from a friend this weekend, Maryanne,” he said.
I looked at him over my reading glasses and he knew I was thinking: Try me. I’ve heard it all.
One of his coworkers lost a pet cat and wanted to take paid compassionate leave – offered by the company when family members are near death or have passed. After all, they reasoned, the pet was a family member. When the company told him he could use his PTO or take time without pay to attend to any details, the employee threatened to sue.
“Yes, I’ve heard something similar before, Kyle, but not about suing. Pet owners have been more vocal about wanting related benefits, especially since the pandemic when so many people adopted dogs and cats for comfort and to combat loneliness.”
“Then I guess you’ve heard about requests for pet insurance and pet day care?” he asked.
“Most certainly have. Came up in the networking group. One of Jason’s clients had a request. The employee rationalized that since the company offered great healthcare benefits for employees and their families, they should offer pet insurance for pet owners. Even did a poll to see how many others have pets. Jason suggested that the company research providing an employee discount for pet insurance. It wouldn’t cost the company anything but time, and it would give employees some financial relief.”
Tilting his head, Kyle asked, “Any thoughts about pet day care?”
“Oh,” I sighed. “Child day care is a much bigger challenge, especially after the pandemic. And it’s a bigger social issue. Jack and I were so fortunate that we had the financial means to afford good child care when the girls were small. I’ve never had pets, so I admit, I don’t fully understand, at least emotionally, the issue.”
“Would offering a discount on that service, too, be a good approach for an organization to take?” Kyle asked.
“I suppose it would. Wait, Kyle. Have you been hearing these requests from any of Kings’ employees?”
“No, not really,” he said. “There’s just a lot of talk about it going around, like you said, after the pandemic with the increase in pet ownership. I’m sure Gloria, in Benefits, would let us know if it was becoming an issue.”
“I’ll make a note to talk with her anyway,” I said.
“Before we get into tackling our current policies, do you know much about, or have you heard about, polices allowing pets in the workplace?” he asked.
“So many of the tales I’ve heard about that did not turn out well. Large dogs spooking clients and coworkers. People with allergies complaining. Employees taking breaks at inopportune times to walk their dogs. The list goes on.”
“I have a friend whose coworker brings a very small dog to work—it’s a comfort animal. I don’t know too much about it—he’s only mentioned it in passing—but apparently it works okay.”
“I’m sure there are positive examples, Kyle. But companies have much to consider before implementing such a policy. You aren’t suggesting we consider something like that at Kings?”
“Relax, Maryanne. I know being a restaurant chain, it’s out of the question. And offering it in our administrative office only wouldn’t be fair to the rest of the employees.”
“I’ve taught you well, Kyle. Now let’s get back to the task at hand—policy review.”
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