A workforce that enjoys better sleep will make for a much more energised and efficient business. Improved productivity, engagement, attendance and better mental and physical health are just some of the benefits. However, lack of sleep can have potentially devastating consequences to health, as well as reputation.
In this article, we look at why sleep matters and share our tips to help employers promote better sleep. As an employer, you might not think you can influence your employees’ sleeping patterns – but you’d be surprised just how much positive influence you can bring.
The health benefits of sleep
The average person needs to get anywhere between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night. Some of the main health benefits are:
- Increased energy during the day: Sleep helps to promote alertness and increased energy levels meaning we are less likely to experience fatigue or brain fog.
- Improved mood: A lack of sleep can lead to irritability and mood swings; sleep is critical to be able to regulate our emotions. We tend to feel more positive, motivated and engaged when getting enough sleep each night.
- Better physical health: Adequate sleep makes it easier to maintain a healthy body weight, as well as lowering cortisol levels.
- Lower risk of heart disease or high blood pressure: This is because a lack of sleep causes inflammation which then can lead to fatty deposits building up in arteries, leading to heart disease.
- Stronger immune system: Sleep allows our bodies to rest and repair especially when ill or when trying to fight off a virus.
All the above benefits aren’t just good for mind and body, they also contribute to making a workforce fitter and more resilient. Having put the case for good sleep, let’s now see what happens when we don’t get enough sleep.
The dangers of too little sleep
A lack of sleep has dangerous consequences that many don’t realise. People sleeping less than 6 hours consistently every night have a higher mortality risk by 11 percent, compared to those sleeping at least 7 hours a night.
Here are ways that sleep loss can affect us:
- Reduced concentration: Sleep deprivation causes brain fog meaning that attention, memory, concentration, creativity and decision making can be hindered and affected. In the worst-case scenario, poor sleep carries the risk of danger to workers and potentially customers and the public.
- Increase in absences: People are more likely to take time off or call in sick due to lack of sleep contributing to other health conditions.
- Negative impacts on mental health: Increased stress, anxiety and depression – we can be more prone to emotional outbursts that can affect both our own and colleagues’ morale.
- Negative impacts on physical health. A chronic lack of sleep has been connected to conditions such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
For employers there is also an economic risk to having employees who lack sleep. As well as a loss of productivity, it has also been linked to higher turnover rates, leading to higher costs for recruiting and training replacement employees.
How employers can promote better sleep
Encouraging better sleep isn’t just about the actions we can take, it goes deeper into the culture of an organisation. There’s little point in advising people about good sleep practice if their time boundaries aren’t respected. Late night emails, celebrating the bravado that comes with ‘pulling an all-nighter’ and routinely working long hours to meet deadlines will all eventually take their toll.
Here are some of the actions employers can take:
- Focus on quality of output, not hours: As an employer, focus on your employee’s productivity instead of how many hours of work they do. This can be a challenge for those who micro-manage and who like to see employees present to satisfy their own egos. What’s more, a long hours culture encourages presenteeism.
- Train line managers to look out for poor sleep signs: Line managers have a big opportunity to influence good sleep patterns and should make an effort to dissuade remote workers from working throughout the night. This requires checking in on those who aren’t physically present.
- Sleep education awareness: Provide employees with information and resources on sleep hygiene, including tips for establishing a regular sleep schedule, creating a restful environment, and managing stress. Also ensure access to mental health resources, as stress and anxiety can negatively impact sleep.
- Advise on the dangers of excessive screen time: We all need to take breaks and too much blue screen light, particularly in the evenings, can slow down our ability to sleep. New research from a Norwegian survey suggests that people who spend more time looking at a screen in bed are more likely to report insomnia and sleep loss. It indicates that each additional hour of screen time was linked to a 63% increase in insomnia risk, and 24 minutes less sleep.
- Hold meetings away from screens: These also bring the benefits of reducing exposure to blue light and can also be very beneficial paired with some exercise, perhaps from walking meetings, that can help to boost morale and engagement.
- Support flexible working: Implementing flexible work hours or remote work options allows employees to better manage their work and sleep schedules.
- Have a shift worker policy: Ensure any shift workers understand the importance of sleep and good diet. You can do your bit by providing healthy food at work out of hours, reducing their dependency on on-site vending machines.
- Lead by example: Managers and leaders should model good sleep habits and prioritise their own wellbeing.
In conclusion
Good sleep is just as important to our wellbeing as good diet, exercise and mental health. However, it often fails to get the focus it needs and this carries risks. Employers can create awareness of the issues, offer training to line managers but ultimately, good sleep will come from creating a supportive culture that respects time boundaries, with leaders setting powerful examples of what good wellbeing looks like.
Further reading:
Cordell Health blog: Sleep Hygiene – How To Improve Sleep And Boost Employee Performance
NHS: Sleep, fatigue and the workplace
Get our guide
We have produced a new Cordell Health workplace poster on Sleep. This is available to subscribers to our wellbeing service. If you are not signed up to this service and would like to find out more, please contact us on wellbeing@cordellhealth.co.uk
Photo by Christian Urfurt on Unsplash
