Helping Workers Who Rely on Animals Without Making a Mess

A military veteran needs to bring a dog with him when he returns to work, but the animal’s bed under the desk triggers a co-worker’s pet-dander allergy. What’s an employer to do?

If you’re running a business in the U.S. and haven’t faced dilemmas over animals that workers need in the workplace, chances are you will sometime soon. Evidence suggests that requests by impaired and disabled workers to bring an animal to work to help them perform certain tasks, keep them focused, or otherwise do their job have grown or are about to rise.

Inevitably, when such requests are granted, ...