Hamilton politicians vote against bringing pets to work
- Oluseyi Olomodosi
- 26 Nov 2019
Hamilton mayor Fred Eisenberger is amongst a number of city employees who bring their pets to work. A group of city councillors has decided that it’s time for Eisenberger and others to put an end to this.
Until recently, the City of Hamilton has had no rules against city employees bringing their pets to the workplace. Supporters of this policy have pointed to the de-stressing effect that certain pets can have. A lot of city staff enjoy having theirs and their coworkers’ pets around the office.
But this isn’t the case for everyone. It’s estimated that about 10-20% of humans have some kind of allergy to dogs and cats. Can you imagine having to deal with constant allergy symptoms on top of your daily tasks at work? Aside from allergies, city councillors who voted against the open pet policy cite individual tastes and the potential for distraction as reasons why pets shouldn’t be allowed in city workplaces.
This recommends a policy where everyone can do it. At least 2 councillors aren't on for it though. @BCouncillor says he's been around dogs all his life. They're unpredictable, some people are very allergic & some people are nervous around dogs
— Samantha Craggs (@SamCraggsCBC) November 21, 2019
This can also lead to some difficult situations, as employees who are uncomfortable with the presence of an animal may opt to bear the discomfort for fear of disturbing the peace by speaking up. This puts unfair stress on staff with allergies, phobias, or who just don’t feel comfortable with animals for whatever reason.
On top of this, Ward 9 councillor Brad Clark pointed out that city employees are paid at the expense of taxpayers. He questioned whether it was truly justifiable to spend tax dollars on having staff walk dogs when they should be working. While he loves animals and is a dog owner, he strongly feels that they should be left at home when their owners are working.
While pets provide welcome opportunities for staff to take quick play breaks and break up the monotony of office work, the potential drawbacks make it hard for councillors to justify bringing them to city workplaces.
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