There are plenty of reasons for HR to encourage employees to get a good night’s rest. Here’s one that’s bound to resonate with the C-Suite: Workers lack of sleep could have disastrous consequences on the company’s bottom-line.
A Gallup survey recently took a closer look at workers’ sleep and discovered that workers weren’t getting enough Z’s — and it was ultimately impacting their employers.
Overall, the Gallup survey found that four in 10 U.S. workers (nearly half) don’t get at least seven hour of sleep per night, which is the recommended minimal number.
Specifically, here is the percentage of employee who get at least seven hours of sleep per night by age group:
- 59% (ages 18-29)
- 55% (ages 30-44)
- 57% (ages 45-64), and
- 66% (ages 65 and older).
And quantity isn’t the only thing that’s a problem when it comes to sleep. According to a separate sleep study by by the Virgin Pulse Institute, around 30% of employees reported being unhappy or very unhappy with the quality or quantity of their sleep.
That study found that 76% of workers said they felt tired most days of the week, 40% doze off during the day at least once per month and 15% admit they doze off during the day at least once per week.
Link to lower well-being
The Gallup survey also found a link between lack of sleep and low overall well-being scores, which is determined by factors such as diet, exercise, rest, etc.
As the Gallup researchers pointed out:
“Not getting enough sleep is not only linked to lower well-being for individuals, but it is also costly to the U.S. economy. Employees may not have enough time to sleep because of working long hour, family obligations, insomnia or having poor well-being in other areas. For example, poor physical well-being, social isolation or financial strain could adversely affect quantity of sleep.”
So what can HR pros do to help employees get more sleep? The Gallup researchers recommend flexible scheduling, whenever possible, which can make it easier for staffers to balance work and family demands — and still get enough rest.
Another tactic: Talk to your broker or wellness vendor about providing employees with information on healthy sleeping habits, guides on getting more restful sleep, online programs geared toward improving sleep habits or sleep-tracking tools.
