Pet Corner: Could ‘pawternity leave’ convince you to change jobs or go back to a workplace?

‘Pawternity leave’ is time off from work to care for your pet.

It’s no surprise that for the past 14 months many of our lives have revolved around our pets, both old and new. For older dogs, our increased presence at home has been a joyful experience as they have more time to see and play with their best friends. Many puppies and younger dogs, meanwhile, have not known life without their owners’ constant presence.

While it has been a wonderful time for many pets and owners, with vaccines being administered and a light appearing at the end of the tunnel, many of us are faced with the reality of going back to a workspace and needing to acclimatise a pet with longer hours spend without a human companion or two.

It’s a predicament that has apparently caught the attention of some companies and a number are now offering ‘pawternity leave’ to entice employees away from remote working, according to a Dublin-based HR software firm.

Eppione has launched a new human resources and employee benefits platform that provides businesses with increased flexibility, employee benefits visibility and in-depth people analytics to help businesses adapt to the ‘new normal’ - or is that the ‘new new normal’ now?

Through its platform, Eppione has seen companies offer unique employee benefits, including ‘pawternity leave’ – time off to care for your pet.

CEO David Kindlon says they have noticed companies providing more employee benefits focussed on physical wellbeing, mental wellbeing, and financial wellbeing as a result of the pandemic.

As we look to the future of work, understanding a workforce’s changing trends, habits and priorities will be key to retaining and engaging employees.

Eppione has seen companies offer employee benefits such as Fitness Genes DNA testing kits, sleep and meditation apps, and on-demand access to physiotherapy solutions and financial coaching, as well as some more unusual perks like beauty box subscriptions, flower delivery, and laundry services.

“The days of ping-pong tables and free office snacks are behind us,” Kindlon says.

“Now, employers must look to provide their workforce with tangible benefits to support their health, wellbeing and performance as the pandemic continues. It’s more about access to mindfulness and meditation apps, health insurance, online coaching etc.”

While ‘pawternity leave’ is not the norm in most companies, we could see its popularity grow as companies move to provide personalised benefits that can help their employees in their day-to-day lives. It comes as studies show 78% of workers experienced mental health difficulties during the pandemic.

“Throughout the pandemic, we’ve seen employee wellbeing take centre-stage – and employee benefits are a fundamental component of any wellbeing strategy,” Kindlon says.