Sleeping at work may sound like a taboo but until recently, it was considered the norm by many businesses. Sleeping at work may sound like a taboo but until recently, it was considered the norm by many businesses. For example, police officers in New York regularly took power naps during their shifts until very recently, and in Japan, it is seen as total dedication to work if you are sleeping on the job. The Japanese use the term Inamura to describe sleeping at work, which means ‘present whilst sleeping’. sleeping on the job isn’t looked on as favorably in most Western countries such as the UK. Falling asleep at work can lead to disciplinary action due to the negative impact that it can have on a business. But what should you do if you catch your employee sleeping during working hours? If you catch an employee falling asleep at work, you may understandably feel annoyed that they are wasting company time. However, it’s important to take a step back and establish the reason for them falling asleep before deciding on your next course of action. You’ll need to approach the matter sensitively, bearing in mind that there may be an underlying cause that is not easy for the employee to talk about. For example, there may be an underlying medical condition at fault or a problem at home. Whether or not falling asleep at work is disciplinary should depend on the individual circumstances. Whilst a business may decide to take disciplinary action against an employee who has fallen asleep at work multiple times after playing computer games all night, an employee who has caring responsibilities outside of work that impacts their ability to sleep should be given more leniency. Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder that is caused by the brain’s inability to regulate sleep cycles. This results in the person suddenly falling asleep at inappropriate times. One of the key symptoms of narcolepsy is extreme and overwhelming daytime tiredness, which may lead to your worker accidentally falling asleep whilst at work. If an employee has a medical condition, you are obliged to make reasonable adjustments to support them at work. However, if your worker does not have a medical condition but still struggles to stay awake at work, there are still simple ways in which you can support them, helping to promote motivation and minimize the risk of your employees falling to sleep at work. After all, it’s only natural that your workers will feel tired from time to time, especially if it’s been a busy working week.
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Sunday, March 23, 2025