Every year employees across the country bring their dogs to work the Friday after Father’s Day. It’s National Take Your Dog to Work Day! A celebration of the companionship between canine and human, National Take Your Dog to Work Day hopes to inspire others to adopt from shelters and humane societies. The concept originated in the United Kingdom in 1996, and Pet Sitters International made it a holiday in the U.S. in 1999.
Those in the pet supply business may find this to be just another day at the office, since pets being central to their business platform. So, every day is Take Your Dogs To Work Day at businesses like Petco, Petsmart, Mars Petcare, Trupanion, and Nestle Purina Petcare, who are all super pet-friendly.
However, not only pet companies are dog friendly these days. Tech and marketing businesses seem to be next in line for offering this perk to employees. Google, Zynga, Facebook, Amazon, Airbnb, Procore Technologies, Vungle, Samsung, and Etsy are just a few of the companies across the nation supporting pet-friendly policies.
Are there benefits to having a dog by your side all day? As any business knows, policies like these come with pros and cons.
The Big Benefits of having a Pet-Friendly Policy:
- Perhaps the number one benefit of dogs at work is the reduced stress for most employees. Studies have shown pets in the workplace not only reduce stress but also increase productivity.
- Which brings us to the second benefit. Employees who take breaks to care for their dog tend to be more productive than those who plow through their work. They come back to their desk refreshed and energized, ready to refocus.
- Employees are healthier and so are their dogs because both are getting more physical activity.
- The pet also gets more social interaction, not only from the dog owner but from the entire office.
- Overall, dogs bring a morale boost to the entire office. Not very many can resist the affection of a loveable pup.
- Pet-friendly businesses retain their employees longer and are more attractive to future employees.
Why Some People aren’t stoked about the prospect of having You Bring Your Pup to Work:
- The job satisfaction of employees with allergies or phobias are greatly affected.
- Risk of injury to employees or other dogs increase the legal risk.
- Dogs that are not well-trained lead to distractions in the office.
- What do potential clients think? If dogs on the premises continually turn away dollars, the pros may not matter.
While not all businesses can participate in #TakeYourDogToWorkDay, those who can have a terrific opportunity to see if a pet-friendly policy would work. It also provides some insight into your employees’ desire for this type of policy. To find participating employers and to download a toolkit visit Pet Sitters International. Share your pet-friendly workplace experiences by using #TakeYourDogToWorkDay or #TYDTWD on social media.
—
Photo Credit: Kristina Holovach / Shutterstock.com