"The Magnificent Seven" is the moniker that's been given to the tech giants that are powering the stock market to new highs: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla. Shareholders are making money off of Big Tech, but the same isn't necessarily true for employees at those companies. The median employee pay at two of those companies is well below the US national median pay.

A survey by PetPartners and the Human Animal Bond Research Institute found 82% of US and Canadian HR professionals believe pet-friendly workplaces have an easier time with recruitment and talent retention, while 87% believe offering pet insurance shows consideration for employees. "While the connection between pets and the workplace may still be new for some employers, it's clear there is a strong desire from HR professionals to be inclusive of pet-related voluntary benefits, such as pet insurance, veterinary telehealth, pet bereavement, and more," says Michelle Yates, executive vice president of business development for PetPartners.

Mandating employees return to the office may make life easier for bosses, but a new study from Leesman found that engagement and collaboration improve in a hybrid environment, where workers are only in the office three days at most. Allison English, deputy CEO of Leesman, says quality of interactions matter, not quantity, noting that, "In fact, we see that the greater the number of in-person days, the less the worker is generally satisfied with work-life balance, impacting engagement and their connection to the organization."

AI is good at giving feedback based on hard data, which is often more trusted by employees than peer feedback, according to researchers from the Cambridge Judge Business School, but most people still want advice and guidance from their human bosses and coworkers. "We argue that machine failure feedback raises individuals' awareness of the potential to learn in general. This motivates individuals to allocate resources to learn more from peer failure feedback as well," the authors explain.

LaFawn Davis, Indeed's chief people and sustainability officer, believes the backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion will get worse before it gets better, but the company is helping by giving companies a "Work Wellbeing Score" to help job-seekers find a good cultural fit, as well as using AI to keep hiring "a fundamentally human process." "What we're hoping is that AI and automation just helps to make things faster and fairer by removing some of the decision-making that needs to happen so that humans can focus on the things that matter," Davis says.

I like animals. And I love dogs -- English bulldogs, mastiff, German shepherd, labrador, golden retriever, Saint Bernards are my favorites. I'm a sucker for a sweet furry face begging for treats.

But I don't know that I want to see dogs, cats, ferrets, rats, guinea pigs or other pets in the office. Dogs, while I love them, would totally distract me. Rats, mice, guinea pigs and all manner of reptile belong in cages far from me. Cats don't seem to like me -- truly, they tend to be very snobby to me -- and they make my eyes itch.

I'm in the minority, though, according to our Recruiting & Retention story today. Eighty-two percent of HR professionals say a pet-friendly workplace can help support recruitment and retention efforts. What say you? Do you agree? Or no? Are you okay having pets in your workplace?

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