In a recent online article, The Wall Street Journal explored how employees—and employers—handle the workplace impact of the death of an employee’s pet. With the noticeable increased emphasis on pets as family members, as well as the many new industries and services related to pet ownership and pet care, it’s no surprise that grief due to the loss of a pet is emerging more in work environments.
There are very few employers that offer bereavement leave after the death of a pet as a standard benefit of employment. Those that do tend to be businesses that are already pet-friendly (dogs are welcomed as visitors) and/or pet-centric (a pet-related industry). Other employers allow their staff members to take time off, but categorize that time as a form of personal or sick time that the employee has earned.
While some employees are confident asking for time to grieve a pet, others are not. The reasons behind the reticence may include feeling too upset to ask, feeling embarrassed to be so sad, and worrying that others will ridicule the employee’s degree of loss.
Those left behind when a pet dies often experience grieving stages that are similar to those of the survivors of a human friend or relative’s death. But, not everyone’s reaction to a loss is the same, of course. The griever’s personality, life history, current life situation, and many other factors influence the choices made in grief, and in the next steps taken. This is true whether it was a beloved person or a beloved pet that died.
Coping strategies that are recommended for someone grieving the death of a pet can mimic options offered to people grieving loss of a friend or relative. In addition to expected suggestions like creating a lasting memorial to a pet, talking with others who have undergone a similar loss (either one-on-one or in a support groups designed especially for this situation), and volunteering with animals in need, there are now pet-loss counselors who specialize in helping people navigate the grief that follows the loss of a pet.
Losing a significant source of happiness or comfort is truly painful, whether the loss is of a human, a canine, a feline, or another well-loved companion. “Spillover” to a person’s professional life is not unexpected, although the impact may appear overtly or be manifested in a less perceptible manner.
Read the full WSJ article.
