Deborah McPhee, an Associate Professor of Human Resources Management and Occupational Health and Safety in the Goodman School of Business, wrote a piece recently published in The Conversation about the need for employers to attract and retain millennials by catering to their increased level of pet ownership.

McPhee writes:

The times, they are a-changin’ when it comes to families. No longer is the traditional family configuration a mom, a dad, 2.4 kids and a pet. 

So what’s happening?

There appears to be a trend towards men and women delaying marriage. Millennial women in their 20s and 30s have decided to stay single a lot longer than women did in the past. And instead of kids, they have pets. The new family profile today, indeed, may very well consist of a mom and Fluffy.

Employers, meantime, are clamouring to attract millennials. And many of those millennials are looking for pet-friendly workplaces.

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