So that yawning at work does not become dangerous

Yawning is dangerous - even if you sleep well yourself. Nonetheless, misconduct on the part of an employee or colleague could result in chronic disturbances. Too much coffee in the evening, watching TV, but also permanent appointment checks on the cell phone could trigger sleep disturbances and recovery stress. It is said that sleep problems are indicators of stress and burnout issues and similar problems.

"It was impressive for me to see that my colleagues have the same little problems," says Markus Portner, responsible for quality issues at s: stebler. "Actually, you know that certain behavior patterns are not good, but you don't necessarily think that they can have a big impact on the people around you."

Serious problems can often only be recognized if they are talked about. That's why s: stebler has decided to hold a workshop of a special kind.

Sleep deprivation is dangerous

"Who says they're tired," interjects Markus Portner. "But today you always want to be present. To say you're tired is to declassify yourself."

The company s: stebler is bound to a collective labor agreement, and they work eight hours a day, in the workshop from seven in the morning to four in the afternoon, with the regular breaks. "It's tightly organized and we have that under control," says Markus Portner. "We don't have the field service under control. Although these employees report their hours, when they step on the gas, they are omnipresent and work everywhere. They check their e-mails in the car at noon and at home in the evening, and if they can't fall asleep, they write another quote. It's true that workshop employees also know this pressure to perform, but time management is different. So I think salespeople are much more at risk."

For the company, sleep problems are also an issue in terms of performance, of course, but even more so in terms of accident risk. "We have large machines, so you shouldn't be careless," says Portner. For Markus Portner, the offer from Suva to conduct a sleep workshop was therefore very timely.

"If you analyze the near-accidents, however, you often see that carelessness was the cause. Now the question arises: were these employees too routine, were they under pressure, were they simply having a bad day, were they distracted or, at best, were they actually too tired? It's difficult to tell."

Sleep problems cost insurers over CHF 512 million

In fact, the effects of too little or too poor sleep are very great. 30 percent of employees in Switzerland are affected by sleep problems. This not only leads to exhaustion and mental and physical illnesses - these people are also less productive and, above all, much more at risk of accidents.

Suva was able to substantiate in a study that sleep problems played a role in every fifth occupational accident. "That's around 53,000 occupational accidents per year, which cause costs estimated at 283 million Swiss francs," says Urs Näpflin, Suva's Prevention Services Advisory Group.

"In addition, leisure accidents due to sleep problems cost another 512 million Swiss francs. These are often accidents involving falling and tripping or injuries with machines and tools. Particularly at risk are poor sleepers who are older than 30, sleep less than seven hours per night and work more than 50 hours per week."

Customized sleep workshop:

The workshop is one of several prevention modules offered by Suva and can be tailored to any company, occupational group and starting situation.

www.suva.ch