This service is NOT in Brooklyn; it’s in Washington, DC. But I thought it sounded interesting and like something we should have in Park Slope.

Brighter Days Collective is a worker self-managed dog walking service. That means that the people who do the work make the executive decisions about how it’s done. In their own words:

"It also means that you as the client have a direct and accountable relationship with the person working with your companion animal.  Your furry one is not out with just any yahoo; they’re out with the Top Brass, because here – we’re all Top Brass."

By removing that level of administration, Brighter Days has made their services far more affordable than the typical pet care company. Everyone at Happy Days has health benefits, paid vacation, and "the sort of control over our work that most folks dream about." In their own words again:

"We think life is about more than punching a clock.  In a reasonable world, each of us would have the surplus time and energy to be fully realized community members, siblings, children, neighbors, lovers, intellectuals, parents, and whatever else our hearts might long for.  And we’d have the opportunity to meaningfully determine the course of our lives and our communities.
Brighter Days is our way of putting that ethic into practice.
Whether it’s our commitment to workplace democracy, our commitment to ecologically sustainable tools and materials (relying on bikes rather than cars, using biodegradable waste bags, etc), our relationship to grassroots community organizations, or our commitment to empowering our workers and clients alike to pursue lives that go beyond self-interest and survival… This is more than just a job to us.
It’s an expression of our belief that each of us is capable of better.  Our labor should enrich and celebrate our lives, not degrade and shorten them."