British workers need more sleep

A study conducted by Ashridge Business School has revealed that many UK workers are suffering from sleep deprivation, finding that on average, workers are getting 6.47 hours sleep a night compared to the recommended amount of 7.5 hours.

1,000 professionals were included in the research which assessed how sleeping habits affect work, physical and social performance on a scale of one to five.

It found that senior managers are less likely to report a negative impact on their workplace performance than their junior colleagues, with chief executives saying sleep deprivation affected them at a level of 3.2447 compared to those in non-managerial roles saying 3.2576.

Lack of sleep commonplace at the top

Viki Cuplin of the Ashridge Business School said there could be four possible reasons to why company leaders didn’t report sleep deprivation as something that they feel affects them:

• A macho culture that makes lack of sleep acceptable
• A lack of honesty from lower level colleagues to how sleep deprivation affects their behaviour
• They might be physically “hardwired” to deal with lack of sleep which has helped them reach a leadership position
• They might have developed “coping mechanisms” during their business careers

There are many reports that suggest sleep is vital to our career progress, and that staying up all night is a real killer to overall performance.

In fact, according to Harvard Medical School, those who are drunk can outperform people who are lacking sleep, highlighting the importance of getting enough rest and not working long after you intended to go to sleep.

It is therefore vital to educate workers about the problems associated with sleep deprivation as it is an issue which negatively effects personal and business productivity.

Ensure your employees are performing to their peak

Successful HR employees will create a workplace environment that supports the wellbeing of its employees, taking responsibility and encouraging staff to adopt a lifestyle that fully supports the business as a whole.

The recruitment experts at Portfolio match exceptional candidates for positions within HR departments where people management is important, such as payroll team leader .

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