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Abstract
Work place napping is natural low cost activity to increase worker productivity. Most employers do not mind a coffee break, lunch break, but if employees take a nap break, they will probably get fired. In today's fast-paced society and cut throat global competition, most companies frown on the idea of "napping" in the workplace in the workplace. But the concern of napping is going through a slow revolution because of the concerns about the "bottom- line" reduced productivity and profits due to sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation is estimated to cost US businesses $18 billion annually17.
Napping has been scientifically proven to boost alertness and creativity. This has interesting implication for the workplace. If managers were to let their employees 20-30 minutes nap during the afternoon, it could increase productivity. Today's 24/7 culture has created a sleep deprived nation, with too many people cheating on their sleep. The paper cites some examples of businesses that have already come to this realization i.e. NASA, Google, Zappos and Huffington Post to name a few. These businesses have implemented nap areas to boost employee productivity, creativity and wellness.
Keywords: Nap, workload, productivity.
Introduction
Shakespeare called -sleep" the chief nourisher of life's feast. But sleep is a rare commodity in stressed out America. Overachievers used to state loudly, "Lunch" is for the Losers and believed Sleep is for -Suckers". Additionally social culture glorifies sleeplessness. Encouraging a culture of sleepless is nonsensical and downright dangerous. The ultimate perk for the truly successful is now hours of sleep. Nearly two thirds of adults get fewer than eight hours of sleep at night according to the National Sleep Foundation, Washington, DC.
Sleep deprivation is not just an individual health hazard, it is a public one4. Sleepy workers are dangerous, less productive and a major source of increased health care costs and corporate liability. Studies of the workplace and transportation industries reveal that human error causes upto 90% of accidents, with inadequate sleep representing a major factor in human error (Time, 1990).
In the United States sleep deprivation is responsible for a fifth of all motor vehicle accidents and 8000 death annually. Estimates are that 80,000 drivers fall asleep at the wheel every day. Ten percent of them run off the road...