Four research-based ways to reduce employee fatigue

As a whole, professionals today tend to have more demands on them than in previous generations. In particular, due to the trend of increasing incumbent responsibility and engagement, employees are typically working harder, for longer hours¹, and are generally considered to be busier². While positive in many regards, these changes in workplace expectations have also served to increase feelings of employee fatigue and sleepiness. Research has suggested that sleepiness can reduce one’s ability to process information—such as thinking, learning, and remembering—as well as reduce general job performance.

Recent research out of the Journal of Applied Psychology shed some additional light on what causes sleepiness and what organizations can do to minimize its occurrence. In terms of causes, there are two primary ones:

• • Job Demands. When job demands are excessively high, employees may experience reduced quality of sleep and reduced quantity of sleep.
• • Irregular Work–Schedules. Irregular schedules (e.g., long shifts, night hours) may wreak havoc on one’s natural circadian rhythm.

Fortunately, organizations are within a unique position to help reduce employee sleepiness. Consider the following tips:

• • Stay on top of workloads. Regularly tap your team and assess workload. While asking employees to take on additional demands may address short-term needs, it may detrimentally impact the long-term.
• • Be mindful of work scheduling. Shift work or irregular schedules are sometimes a necessary evil in organizations. Take care when scheduling to ensure that employees, for instance, aren’t working long shifts back-to-back.
• • Encourage breaks. When under heavy pressure, many employees push to work through lunches. However, encourage your team to take breaks in order to withdraw. In fact, a 15-20 minute power nap will boost one’s memory, cognitive skills, creativity, and energy levels.
• • Provide benefits to encourage healthy living. Regular exercise—even just half an hour—offers multiple benefits for sleep. Exercise, especially aerobic exercise, generally makes it easier to fall asleep and sleep more soundly.

¹ Milliken, F. J. & Dunn-Jensen, L. (2004). The Changing Time Demands of Managerial
and Professional Work: Implications for Managing the Work-Life Boundary. In E. Kossek and S. J. Lambert (eds), Work and Life Integration: Organizational, Cultural, and Individual Perspectives. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

² Schor, J. (2003). The (even more) overworked American. In J. De Graaf (ed.), Take back your time: Fighting overwork and time poverty in America (pp. 6-11). San Francisco: Barrett-Koehler Publishers.