HC India to offer 'pawternity leave' to employees

HarperCollins Publishers India (HCI) is to grant "pawternity leave" to employees who are adopting pets.

According to the Huffington Post, employees will be entitled to five working days' paid leave if they have just adopted a pet, to encourage responsible adoption of pets.

Ananth Padmanabhan, c.e.o. of HCI, said: "At HarperCollins we want the very best of work-life balance for our colleagues, and that includes being mindful about their family needs. Pet children need as much attention [as human children], if not more. We don't want colleagues to worry about the [amount] of leave they have before deciding to start a family."

In addition to pawternity leave, HCI will permit employees to bring their pets into office, which is based in Noida, where the animals will be kept in a designated area.

The policy aims at ensuring a healthier work-life balance for employees who might need time off to tend to their pets. The initiative is aimed at transforming HCI into an employee-friendly company, with a human resources (HR) department that is "progressive in its outlook".

Manjula Sreekumaran, head of HR at HCI, said: "We are always thinking of ways to make HarperCollins the best place to work for, in every respect. In fact, in the UK, we just won an award for diversity in the work place".

Subhashree Das, digital marketing manager at HCI, who recently adopted a puppy named Luna, said: "It felt great not just to know that the concept of pawternity leave exists, but also that HarperCollins is implementing it. I became the first employee to experience it, and it allowed me to be there for Luna, when we got her, without feeling torn or worried about work. It was such a comfort,"

HCI is the second largest trade publisher in India with a 25-year-old presence in the market.

A spokesperson for HarperCollins UK said the company has no plans to bring the policy to the UK.