Younger Workers Would Take a Pay Cut to Spend More Time With Their Pets

By Bruce Gil, Quartz (TNS)

Pets play a large role in how Americans make financial decisions—and for some younger Americans this even means they would take a pay cut for their four-legged friends, according to a survey from the financial services firm Empower.

Empower surveyed 1,000 pet owners online and found that 94% of them consider their pets as a part of the family and spend money on them accordingly.

On average, respondents reported spending $1,355 on their pets in past year—most of it on food. Dog owners spent 14% more money than cat owners. Specifically, owners of golden retrievers spent the most at an average of $1,780.

With all this spending involved, over half of all pet owners, 57%, said they take their pets into consideration in long-term financial planning.

Over a third of American pet owners, 35%, went as far as to say that their pets motivate them to work harder and be more financially responsible.

However, some younger Americans said they would be willing to make less money in order to spend more time with their animal companions.

Thirty-one percent of Gen Z pet owners said they would take a pay cut for a job that had flexible hours, giving them more time with their pets. Millennials felt the same, with 34% responding that they would reject a higher paying job to spend more time with their furry loved ones.

A pet’s influence on job preferences extends to all ages.

Overall, 41% of Americans of all ages said they would return to office if they were allowed to take their pets with them and 26% said their dream job would include pawternity leave, allowing them to take days when they get a new pet.

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