Bring your Pet-to-Work Policies – The Do’s, the Don’ts, and the Cautionary Notes

If you’ve ever explored SpringLaw’s Teams’ Bios, it’s no secret that we are huge pet lovers over here! And, being a virtual law firm, we are lucky enough to work with our furry friends daily. For workplaces that are in-office or hybrid, we have seen various workplaces try to replicate this joy by introducing pet-friendly policies to allow employees to bring their pets to work. For animal lovers, the benefits of bringing your pet to work days may be obvious including improved morale, reduced stress, and even increased productivity. However, it’s not all rainbows and butterflies for all employees and if you’re thinking about rolling out a Pet Policy at your workplace, there are some very important legal factors to consider before doing so.  

Pet Policy at your workplace

Is your workspace appropriate for animals?

First and foremost, you need to determine if your workspace is pet-friendly. Generally, a smaller office setting works great for pets and can limit the number of pets onsite at once. A larger organization, with a larger workforce and bigger office space, may not be realistic if all employees who want to bring their pets to work, actually do so. Also, bringing a pet to a factory, construction site, or other non-office workspaces can cause serious hazards and would not be an appropriate workspace for a Pet Policy. 

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Time to Reconvene your Joint Health & Safety Committee

Once workers are back together in the workplace, employers will want to ensure that their health and safety policies and programs have been reviewed and account for all the changes and new ways of doing things. Your Joint Health and Safety Committee will play a role! 

What’s a Joint Health and Safety Committee?

In Ontario, one legal requirement of a compliant health and safety program (H&S Program) under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) is for workplaces that regularly employ 20 or more workers to establish a Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC). A JHSC is made up of employees and managers who meet on a regular basis to deal with health and safety issues in the workplace. The group is required to have a balanced number of employee representatives and management representatives. Employers must consult with the JHSC about their H&S Program and employees can directly approach their JHSC with any health and safety concerns. 

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