Pet sick leave costs UK businesses GBP18 Million annually

Research commissioned by LV= into the impact of pet illness and death on their owners’ work attendance has found that British businesses are losing GBP18 million a year in lost workforce hours, as thousands of staff take ‘pet sick leave’ either to look after their sick animal or to grieve because their pet has died.

The new LV = pet insurance report revealed that one in ten dog or cat owners interviewed (11 per cent) said they had stayed at home to nurse a sick pet, while 11 per cent had stayed off work because they were so upset after their pet had died.

There were 1.1 million pet owners who called in sick last year because their dog or cat was ill or had died, each taking an average of 2.4 days off. Almost a quarter of those who took time off for their pet, told their boss they were taking time off work due to their own ill health .

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