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M2 PRESSWIRE, April 30, 2002 An alarming 22 per cent of all employees in Great Britain, 6.1 million people, lose sleep over work, an independent survey commissioned by health & well-being management company vielife revealed today. Senior and middle management households are the most severely affected, with 28 per cent saying their work life impacts negatively on their ability to get a sound night's sleep. And those employees climbing the career ladder aged between 25 - 44 are more likely to suffer job-related sleep problems than other age groups, with more than a quarter admitting they regularly or sometimes suffer sleeplessness because of work. Despite the extent of this problem, only a third of employees say their employer currently offers a support system to help cope with workplace stress and its impact on sleep. Yet nearly half of employees say they would consider using a confidential health and well-being system to manage work-life balance. Reflecting the changing work environment and growth of computer literacy, this 48 per cent say they would use an online-based health and wellness system at work. Sleep expert Professor Chris Idzikowski, commented: 'A key indicator of the health and well-being of individuals are their sleeping patterns. Lack of sleep can result in increased absenteeism, decreased productivity and higher workplace accident levels. Employers need to wake up to this problem now and help their employees manage their work-life balance if they want British business to increase productivity and compete effectively worldwide.' Employers in the North may have some suggestions to combat the impact of work on sleeping patterns - the survey shows just 14 per cent of employees in the North say they lose sleep over their jobs. This compares with 28 per cent of employees in Wales, and a quarter or more of the workforces in London (25 per cent), the West Midlands (25 per cent) and the North West (26 per cent). Clive Pinder, Managing Director of vielife Consulting, commented: 'Here is a real opportunity for British businesses to get a competitive advantage in an area that is generally ignored, but that can have a profound impact on individual and corporate performance. 'At a time when the annual cost of work-related illness to British business is estimated to be GBP 12 billion , employers must adopt a preventative approach, recognising the symbiotic relationship between employee health & well-being and organisational performance. 'Commitment to the welfare of employees leads to improved job satisfaction, increased loyalty and increased productivity. The impact on the business is an improvement to the bottom line, as employers reap the financial returns associated with investing in their human capital.' Key findings Regional differences: * Those regions most open to using an online, confidential, health & well-being service provided by their employers were East Midlands (60%), Yorkshire & Humberside (53%), London (52%), West Midlands (50%), and the North West (49%). Men v women: * There's very little gender gap when it comes to the impact of work on sleeping patterns, men - 23% and women - 22% * Men say they are more likely to use an online, confidential, health & well-being service provided by their employers (54%), than women (41%). Age difference: * 16-24 year age group were the most likely to say they would use an online service than workers aged 25-44. Socio-economic differences: * Professionals and managers - AB social-grade households - are much more affected (28%) by work-related sleep problems than semi-skilled manual workers (17%). Notes to Editors - Research Notes: Research was conducted by independent research company, BMRB International. A sample of 1,138 employed individuals in Great Britain were interviewed on a telephone omnibus survey. The sample was representative of the populations in the following standard regions: North (including Cleveland, Tyne & Wear, Durham, & Northumberland), Yorkshire & Humberside, North West, West Midlands, East Midlands, East Anglia, Wales, South West, South East and London - Professor Chris Idzikowski BSc PhD CPsychol FBPsS: Expert on sleep. Prof Idzikowski (Surrey University) has been involved in sleep research and medicine for over 20 years. He was the chairman of the British Sleep Society and the Royal Society of Medicine Forum on sleep and its disorders (now the Sleep Medicine Section), and has been on the clinical and educational sub-committees of the European Sleep Research Society. Prof Idzikowski is currently on the board of the US Sleep Medicine Foundation. He runs the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service, which provides support for general practitioners and primary care physicians in the UK, Ireland and Europe. He is the author of several books including Serotonin, Sleep and Mental Disorders. Prof Idzikowski is special adviser to vielife on the subject of sleep - vielife provides programmes developed by experts using a unique evidence-based approach that integrates four critical areas of health & well-being - sleep, stress, nutrition and physical activity - with proven 'stages of change' methodology. vielife focuses on prevention rather than cure, and provides all of its services within a fully confidential and secure framework. vielife's network of internationally recognised experts support the programmes. - vielife was formed in 2001 with the acquisition of the 'Institute Biomedical Sport et Vie' in France. Founded in 1989, the core of IBSV and now vielife's activities has been maximising the potential of individuals and organisations through science-based health & well-being services. - From its roots in optimising the performance of air force pilots, vielife has developed leading-edge programmes for elite athletes in sports (Formula One, yachting, golf and tennis) and the corporate arena. Experience gained providing advice to those working in high-pressure environments has been applied effectively in companies including Philips, AXA Insurance and Aventis. vielife's current client list includes Jordan Racing, the NHS, and Sapient. vielife currently has three integrated core offerings: - vielife One on One: a programme to maximise business executives' performance by identifying and reducing physical and mental factors that impede performance. It assists high performance individuals in elite corporate and sports environments to improve the way they manage their health & well-being and the way they perform and live in their highly pressured environments. - vielife Online: an intranet-based health & well-being service that delivers confidential interactive assessments, relevant content and proactive intervention programmes to employees, and knowledge and forecasting tools to employers, enabling them to maximise the value of their human capital. - vielife Consulting: a consulting group that translates data collected from vielife's Online services into practical programmes that change behaviours and cultures to drive high performance organisations. - vielife's European headquarters are based at 72-76 Borough High Street, London SE1 1XF Tel: +44(0)20 7571 3838 CONTACT: Jeannette Crockett, Hill & Knowlton
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Copyright © 2002 Macquarie Institute, Australia
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