Sleep and Work Statistic Report: How to be the Early Bird

It should come as no surprise that your work will have a big impact on how much sleep you’re getting. If you are stressed at the job where you spend most of your waking hours Monday to Friday, then it follows that your sleep quality will suffer as a result. And this, in turn, will have an effect on your productivity and performance: a vicious cycle. The transition to working from home that many employees have seen over the years doesn’t promise much better results either.

Understanding the relationship between work and sleep, and finding a healthy work life balance, is a crucial first step in ensuring that you’re getting consistently good sleep. We’ve done plenty of research into the sleep routines of business leaders and celebrities, as well as which industries have the employees with the worst sleep, and even which companies allow napping, to bring you insights into this relationship.

Below, we’ll also provide some advice on how to avoid taking your job home with you and improving your work life balance so you can get a good night’s sleep.

How can sleep affect work?

As I’ve said, the amount of sleep you’re getting has a big impact on your work and productivity. Sleep deprivation affects your focus, concentration, reaction times, and increases the likelihood of you making mistakes. In a study by The Lancet, a group of surgeons made 20-30% more mistakes after a bad night’s sleep. Many of us have experienced feeling cranky and anxious when we’re tired, so bringing that short fuse into work isn’t going to be good for anyone.

One study found that almost 38% of US workers within a sample experienced fatigue over a two-week period, with 65.7% of these workers reporting health-related “lost productive time” compared to the 26.4% who did not experience fatigue.

The economic impact of sleep deprivation

The study also reported: “Workers with fatigue cost employers $136.4 billion annually in health-related LPT, an excess of $101 billion compared with workers without fatigue.”

This is part of a wider economic impact of sleep loss. Elsewhere, it has been estimated that fatigue can cost individual employers just under $2,000 per employee.

Revenge bedtime procrastination

Research around bedtime procrastination is still mostly in its infancy. It’s a relatively new term that originated on social media, particularly in response to China’s “996 working hour system” (an illegal practice in China where workers are expected to work 9am-9pm, six days a week).

People engaging in revenge bedtime procrastination sacrifice their sleep in an attempt to claim back free time that they have lost to work. As with other forms of procrastination there is an “intention-behavior gap”, meaning people still want to get enough sleep even if their behavior isn’t reflecting this.

This suggests that the issue could be one of self control, and one study has suggested that people are more likely to engage in bedtime procrastination, rather than sticking to their intended bedtime, if they have resisted more desires throughout the day.

Which industries have the best and worst sleep?

Early Bird, the blog by US mattress company Amerisleep, looked at data from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention to see which occupations are the most sleep deprived.

Here are the five most sleep deprived occupations, according to the data:

Some 45.8% of firefighters were reported to get less than seven hours sleep, a higher proportion than nurses (43.3%), cooks (41.4%), law enforcement officers (39.8%), and health practitioners (39.7%).

Those with the best sleep are air transportation workers, only 21.4% of which were reported to be getting less than seven hours of sleep, followed by “supervisors and managers” (23.7%), “other teachers and instructors” (25.2%), and postsecondary teachers (25.4%).

The data also suggested that shift workers, especially those on night shifts, are most at risk of sleep deprivation because of the disruption in work-sleep balance. On top of this, one in five Americans said that their work causes them to lose sleep. Stress also has a huge impact, and several studies have demonstrated that work is a significant contributing factor to this: the American Institute of Stress reports that 83% of US workers say they suffer from work-related stress on a daily basis, with 39% saying that this is caused by their workload.

What about remote working?

Since the pandemic, remote working has become much more popular. Although taking the work commute out of the equation might seem like a benefit by allowing workers more time to catch up on sleep, remote working might actually be having a negative impact.

A 2017 report by the International Labour Organization – carried out across the UK and Europe as well as the US, Brazil, Japan, Argentina, and India – claimed that while the rise of remote working offers greater flexibility, there are several negative impacts. Reported downsides included the tendency to work longer hours and the blurring between work and home life. The report also demonstrated that a greater number of regular home-workers experienced sleep disturbances and waking up in the night compared to those who always commuted to an office.

The increase in freedom when working from home can make it harder to stick to a consistent schedule, potentially upsetting your sleep cycle, while setting up your home office in your bedroom can further blur the boundary between home and work.

Which companies allow naps at work?

According to the Sleep Foundation, napping can be beneficial in reducing fatigue while also improving alertness and reaction time.

Some companies appear to recognize this too.

At the Google or Facebook offices, for instance, you might expect to find some Metronaps EnergyPods to catch some shuteye in the middle of the day. Other companies that let you take a nap include Nike and Thrive Global.

How are leaders and celebrities sleeping?

If you’ve ever wondered about how some of the world’s leaders and celebrities are sleeping, you’re in luck. UK bed and mattress company Dormeo has compiled a list of some high profile names and how much sleep they get.

Getting the most sleep is Oprah Winfrey, with eight hours a night (10pm-6am), while Donald Trump is getting a measly three hours a night (1am-4am). Getting seven hours of sleep a night are tech moguls Tim Cook and Bill Gates, as well as Serena Williams and Kris Jenner.

Former US president Barack Obama and Elon Musk both get six hours, while Richard Branson gets thereabouts with 5-6 hours, as does Victoria Beckham (5.25-6.5 hours).

How to sleep better for work

There’s no one quick fix solution to getting a better night’s sleep. Though there are steps you can take to improve your sleep quality. Here are a few tips:

• If you work night shifts, make sure you’re still able to set yourself a consistent sleep schedule. This means trying to maintain this schedule even on your days off. Having a routine or ritual before bed may also help.
• Creating the ideal bedroom environment can also help you sleep better. This might include making sure you’re minimizing noise and light, and ensuring the room is at the optimum temperature (this is around 60-65°F).
• A healthy diet can improve sleep quality, and limiting caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine – especially right before bed – can help too. Also be sure you’re giving your body enough time to digest meals before going to bed (the recommended time is two to four hours).
• A bad night’s sleep could be the sign that your mattress or bed is nearing the end of its life. If your mattress is dipping in the middle or isn’t able to support your body anymore, you should think about replacing it.