Sleep affects every aspect of our lives, including the time we spend at work. The number of hours we sleep and how we sleep has a significant impact on our productivity at work, our behaviour and our safety. 

Recent studies found that people who sleep less than five hours or more than ten hours a night take from 4.6 to 8.9 more sick days than people who sleep between seven and eight hours a night.  

In fact, the lack of sleep among workers is leading to decreasing levels of productivity which is having an impact on the economies of European countries. It seems that people who suffer from some form of insomnia – both if they wake up in the middle of the night or if they have problems falling asleep – are costing employers a great deal of money on a yearly basis. 

These expenses add up in a number of ways, including through rising accident rates and an increased dependence on health services. 

Other research show that when one sleeps for an adequate number of hours, one is more assertive and creative. Sleep is associated with innovation and sleep deprivation affects one’s mental abilities.  According to a study carried out by the Journal of Vision, the more sleep deprived you are, the slower you become at work. 

Researchers from the state of Michigan in the United States found that sleep strengthens what they call ‘working memory’. This is a type of memory which is associated with problem solving, one’s vocabulary, one’s decision making and the ability to comprehend what one is reading. 

The ball is in the workers’ and employers’ court – they are the ones who need to prioritise sleep. Efforts to encourage workers to sleep well and for a sufficient number of hours is an investment that pays for itself at the workplace.