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BRUSSELS — EU officials have been taking part in a trial run of a “bring your dog to the office” scheme — but 30 breeds were barred from being brought into the office.
An internal Commission memo, sent out ahead of the trial run held recently at the directorates-general for home affairs and for justice and consumers, classes 11 kinds of dog as “attack dogs or guard dogs” that civil servants must not bring to work, ranging from to rottweilers and mastiffs to — in what can only be a case of blatant Brexit revenge — English terriers and Scottish greyhounds.
Last year, the Commission said it would trial a dogs-in-the-workplace scheme after a campaign by MEPs. Austria’s European Commissioner Johannes Hahn, who is in charge of administrative matters, said in an internal press release last October that he was inspired by similar schemes in his native country. “It turns out to be positive in many places. This is why I suggested this test be carried out in the Commission,” he was quoted as saying in the release.
But not everyone is keen.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate,” said one Commission staffer at a DG that recently trialed the dog day, and who asked not to be named for fear of having a pack of wild dogs set on them. “I will sound very reactionary and anti-dog, but when you take the elevator and you are nose-to-nose with a huge dog, like happened to me, you don’t feel comfortable,” she said.
“You hear ‘woof woof woof’ in the corridor while you work,” she added.
In addition to the 11 banned attack dogs, there is also a list of dogs that are not recommended in case they “make colleagues uneasy.” This includes German and Belgian shepherds and Dobermanns, says a set of internal guidelines from this month.
Officials are advised not to bring in Russian black terrier dogs — not because of the war in Ukraine, but because they are “oversized.”
The same applies to Irish wolfhounds and Pyrenean mountain dogs.
The Commission provided five pages of guidelines to civil servants before the trial run. “Research shows that interacting with dogs can reduce stress and anxiety and increase well-being,” it says.
But it adds that workers who are allergic to dogs or feel uncomfortable should “consider teleworking (if applicable).”
Other than reducing stress and anxiety among the EU’s civil service, the stated objectives are “to contribute to the attractiveness of our Institution.”
Officials are only allowed to bring one dog each, and they must be kept on a leash. Photos from a trial run at DG Justice on Friday, seen by POLITICO, suggest this health and safety guideline was not adhered to.
The Commission first piloted the scheme last October as part of a mental health week for civil servants, describing it as a “barking success” that produced “countless Instagram-worthy moments” in a press release.
The DG for maritime affairs and the DG for taxation also trialed the dog experiment in February. Four dogs came to the first DG event, while “9-10” dogs were present at the latter, the Commission wrote in an internal press release published after the event. The Commission says a total of 60 dogs have been brought into the office as part of the scheme.
“DG HR provided a notice to indicate which office had hosted a dog, so that cleaning services could pay particular attention to cleaning those offices,” it added.
An evaluation is slated for the end of 2024 to assess the feasibility of implementing a permanent policy regarding dogs in the workplace.
“Dogs must be … toilet trained,” DG HR wrote in the guidelines sent to staff. “Dogs cannot be brought into meetings with external stakeholders,” it says, and “they must not be allowed to bark in the office.”
The European Paw-liament has so far not followed the Commission’s lead.
Mari Eccles contributed to this article.
