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"Peternity leave" - now that's what I call enlightened management

So, halleluiah, UK employers are finally seeing sense and allowing their hard-working staff time off, if necessary, to care for their pets.  Yes, peternity leave, according to today's Sunday Times is becoming more acceptable.

Now, don't get all huffy  on me and say this is workers' rights going too far; au contraire.  Did you know that pet owners are healthier?  And what do healthier workers make?  Better employees - more hardworking, more efficient, more...cost-effective for your organisation.  Just do the math, as our US pals like to say.
 
And here are some companies that think it does make sense - Halifax and Bank of Scotland (not exactly failing businesses, are they?) while Google allows their staff to bring the dog to work "realising that workers are reluctant to leave them at home or give them to dog walkers, who can charge up to £25 for a two-hour walk".  Even Royal Mail is considering giving compassionate leave if a pet dies but I do think Royal Mail has more pressing matters to deal with right now, to be honest, and they've already sacked a worker who was grief-stricken when his dog died.
 
And, like parents, pet owners do have to take time off to care for their charges but they may not admit it to their bosses.  After all, it's easier to say you are ill than you have to stay at home to care for your child.  Anyway, "research by Petplan, the insurance company, found that 35% of its customers admitted to having taken time off work to look after pets or settle new animals. Half said they took a week off a year to look after their pets, potentially costing British businesses £19m annually".
 
Blimey!  That's a sobering thought but just think, if employers really were enlightened, staff cover could be arranged and the work would get done!  
 
But, of course, work experts are warning that asking for peternity leave may cost you your job
 
According to Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at the Lancaster University management school,  “When jobs are insecure, telling a boss that you want time off work to look after a pet would not go down well.”
 
I am lucky; the Mistress works from home and if she has to go to a meeting without me, she can organise the pet sitter but she has deliberately taken a pay cut so that she can be at home.  Once, a few years ago, she asked an old flame if he could take me to the office but he refused point blank.  He said it was "against office policy".  That, she said, spoke volumes about his employer and then he was made redundant, which she said proved her point.
 
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Want to find the best staff? Make sure they have a dog...

Yes, quite true, says the The Times. According to its Careers supplement, “66 per cent of dog owners say that they would work longer hours if they could take their dog to work”. So if you want your staff to put in the time (probably more than the EU allows, let’s face it), dog-owning staff may be the logical solution – unless it’s Tesco or a food processing plant...! And with a reduced payroll bill, it may prove a cheaper option too – because ”32 per cent of dog owners say that they would take a pay cut to work with their dogs”.

Is it “barking mad”? Well, not if you consider that dog owners tend to be healthier (they take more exercise, have lower blood pressure, etc etc – IF you exclude the owners seen on TV’s Fat Pets). And what’s more, having a dog in the office is good for staff morale. Why? Because a dog can be a great tension diffuser. When staff are having a huge argument, along comes the dog and whey hey, everyone cheers up.

And it isn’t just employers who should take note. Landlords should read this too. The Mistress and I recently met a very successful business owner in the park (with her pet pooch). As the boss, she decided that her office would be dog-friendly, which worked well for everyone. She runs a tight ship with happy staff and gets to keep her dog close by. It’s a win:win situation. And because the business is so successful (and growing), they needed more office space. After much searching the perfect site was found and contracts were about to be exchanged. Then, out of the blue, the landlord said dogs were strictly off limits and not allowed on the premises. So what happened? The owner said OK, no deal. And she walked away, just like that.

The Mistress used to take me to work in her office – they were a forward-thinking lot, her employers – but, in the end, it became too expensive. How so, you may wonder? Well, I used to rummage around the office (open plan) and steal people’s sandwiches! Oh yes! Of course, this meant the Mistress had to reimburse her colleagues every time I got lucky. The worst time was when the auditors came in; they had very expensive sandwiches and I just couldn’t help myself...

So, employers and landlords everywhere, forget family-friendly policies as the way forward; what you really need is a dog-friendly workplace – it will cost you less and keep your staff happy. Now surely that DOES make good business sense?

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