1 in 3 Singapore workers sleep deprived: Study

SINGAPORE - Almost a third of workers in Singapore say they have to sacrifice sleep to fit in personal and work commitments, a new study reports.

The percentage of the sleep deprived here is higher than the global average of 29 per cent.

Singapore respondents also indicated that they are sleep deprived because they either wake up too early or burn the midnight oil to fulfil work commitments.

Nearly a fifth also said that they feel that they have to overcompensate for time taken off for personal matters.

Workers highlighted that a shorter commute and greater flexibility of location would give them more time for extra shut-eye.

However, the study indicated that only 54 per cent of firms are rewarding management for encouraging the creation of a flexible workforce.

These were some of the key findings of a global survey by Regus, an international provider of flexible workplaces, based on interviews with more than 24,000 business-people from over 90 countries.

"Lack of sleep is clearly detrimental to worker health and happiness with long working hours closely linked to heart disease," said John Henderson, regional director of Regus.

Henderson added: "This survey shows that allowing employees to work closer to home in professional and fully efficient environments can have an important impact on family life and provide workers with a few more minutes' kip each morning.

"But the benefits are not just for workers, and firms can also improve productivity and retention by introducing flexible working.

In the survey, 75 per cent of respondents said flexible work can improve productivity and 82 per cent said it would help in staff retention.

"Yet, in spite of the win-win benefits that flexible working can bring on both employee and company side, there is evidently still plenty of grounds for improvement as almost half of Singapore firms do not recognise or reward managers for encouraging the creation of a flexible workforce," he said.

yamadak@sph.com.sg