Fatigue has been implicated in hundreds of thousands of traffic accidents and in some of the most famous workplace disasters, including the Exxon Valdez spill and the destruction of the space shuttle Challenger. It’s a well documented workplace hazard that appears easy to fix – ask workers to get more sleep – yet it continues. Why? Let’s take a look at the hazards associated with chronic sleep deprivation and a simple way for employers to address the problem.

The Yawning Workforce

It takes seven to nine hours to restore, rejuvenate and energize the body and brain. But a Sleep in America poll conducted by the National Sleep Foundation in 2008 found that people are sleeping an average of six hours and 40 minutes a night. Nearly half of U.S. employees (49%) admitted that sleepiness interferes with their performance at work. Many report being chronically sleep-deprived, a condition that occurs gradually over weeks, months or years and creates long-lasting changes in a worker’s ability to think and function.

The survey also found that:

• 29% of workers fell asleep or became very sleepy at work during the past month;
• 12% admitted to being late for work in the past month due to sleepiness or a sleep problem;
• 32% admit to having driven drowsy at least once per month during the past year;
• 36% admitted to having nodded off or fallen asleep while driving;
• 5% said they’ve driven drowsy on a business trip; and
• 2% said they’ve had an accident or near accident due to drowsiness.

Working Under the Influence of Sleepiness

Studies have shown that a person awake for 24 hours straight suffers impairment equivalent to having a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.1% (a level at or above the legal limit for driving in most states and provinces).

Sleep-deprived workers think slowly, experience dangerous attention lapses and may unknowingly take micro-sleeps lasting just long enough to cause a fatal mistake. Experts say that even modest daily sleep loss of as little as one hour per night puts workers at risk of falling asleep and is the reason that sleepiness is the second leading cause of automobile accidents in America (drunk driving is first).

Each year, hundreds die in automobile and workplace accidents caused by workers impaired by fatigue. Many accidents occur when workers fall asleep, overcome by fatigue that no amount of caffeine or willpower can control.

Effects of sleep deprivation noticeable after just a few days include:

• Careless mistakes;
• Difficulty concentrating;
• Memory lapses;
• Irritability;
• Increased risk-taking tendencies;
• Poor logic and judgment;
• Reduced motivation;
• Increased appetite; and
• Poor athletic ability.

Long-term effects include:

• A weakened immune system;
• Diabetes;
• Depression;
• High blood pressure; and
• Obesity (tired workers tend to eat more high-caloric foods).

Conclusion

One of the least expensive and most effective ways to address worker fatigue is to allow workplace napping. Experts say that naps taken at work may keep drowsiness from causing fatigue-related accidents or death. But it’s a practice you should implement with your eyes wide open. Next week, we’ll look at the pros and cons of workplace napping, and how best to go about it, learning from companies such as Google, Pizza Hut and Nike.

Story Tools:  Email This Post  Print This Post Top