Workplace fatigue may diminish productivity and increase the chances of making errors. Weariness may cost organizations both money and time in an office setting, while in riskier sectors, fatigue can raise the chance of accidents and injury on the job.
Fatigue-related errors may be avoided in any job if employers engage in workplace safety and health. Employers can reduce workplace stress, ensure employees take appropriate breaks, and assess employee health on a regular basis to avoid and manage tiredness.
What Is Office Fatigue and How Do You Know If You Have It?
Extreme weariness or exhaustion is referred to as fatigue. It isn't only a sensation of exhaustion. Fatigue has a detrimental impact on an employee's ability to execute their job successfully and, in certain situations, safely in the workplace.
Here are some indications of workplace exhaustion:
Tiredness that persists even after a good night's sleep
Hand-eye coordination issues or sluggish reflexes
Problems with short-term memory and difficulty to focus
Vision blurriness or a loss of visual perception
A desire to sleep for longer periods on days off
Fatigue is induced by a lack of sleep, which may be caused by a job, personal life, or perhaps both. Fatigue may be acute (short-term loss of sleep) or chronic (sleep loss that has accumulated over time).
It might be the consequence of inconsistent sleeping habits, such as rotating between night and day shifts or long periods of work with insufficient breaks. After a lengthy period of time doing repetitive tasks or projects that are not cognitively interesting, an employee may grow exhausted. Long durations of tension, worry, or mental activity may also create fatigue.
How to Deal with Fatigue at the Office
Here are some solutions for office fatigue that you can combat your exhaustion with:
Provide Nutritious, Ready-To-Eat Meals
Meal preparation can take a significant amount of time in anyone's day. As cooking a nutritious dinner for oneself might take ages, many employees will choose fast food instead.
You may help ease some of your workers' stress by delivering complementary, nutritious lunches prepared from whole foods in the office. Try providing nutritious snacks, tea, water, and coffee to the staff on a daily or weekly basis, as well as catered lunches from a local food vendor. This tiny investment will free up some time for your staff, allowing them to concentrate on taking a true rest during the lunch break and leisure between workdays.
Workstations That Are Ergonomic
Let's face it: staying seated in your office chair for up to eight hours a day doesn't allow for much muscular activity. Your body is directly affected by Newton's first rule of motion: an object that is at rest continues to stay at rest (whereas an item in motion prefers to stay in motion!) This is crucial to remember if you have back or neck stiffness or discomfort during the day. Take pauses, take a brief stroll around the building, or invest in an ergonomically designed chair with back support.
Getting an adjustable standing desk will also protect your body from sagging into a crumpled posture, which can cause you discomfort and troubles in the long run.
We recommend getting a standing desk since it can be better for your posture and limit back aches too. The Pro Standing Desk by FlexiSpot is every employee's best friend to combat office fatigue. By switching between the standing and sitting position throughout the day, you will be able to stay more active and reduce the toll that sitting for hours on end can take on the body.
It can also help you burn more calories while you are at work. Standing desks have also been linked to a reduced risk of obesity, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes. It is even shown to increase productivity in the office and increase collaboration between employees. Plus, with the elimination of bad posture, you will be able to combat back, shoulder, and neck aches. Do make sure to get an anti-fatigue mat if you plan on standing!
As for the sitting position, make sure to get an ergonomic chair that can support your back and neck perfectly. Bad posture can be quite detrimental for the spine and result in backaches that leave you feeling tired and fatigued.
Overtime Should Be Limited
Overtime may have a severe influence on an employee's health, which has ramifications for your company.
According to research, working over 48 hours per week has been linked to major decreases in accuracy, productivity, and mental health. Create a working culture that does not put a premium on overwork – set limits on overtime to prevent your staff from becoming exhausted on the job. In the long term, this will save the company money by preventing expensive errors caused by weariness.
"Maintaining normal weekly working hours and avoiding excessive overtime labor lowered the risk of anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbances," according to a 2017 research by the Society of Occupational Medicine.
If at all possible, eliminate overtime and encourage or require your staff to work within the permitted hours.
Holidays Are Required
Working long shifts without enough rest has long-term detrimental consequences for a company. Create a work environment that appreciates vacations and time off. Ensure that your employees take their vacations and that they are able to do so. It's critical to keep an eye on company culture to ensure that individuals don't feel compelled to pick work over vacation.
Taking a vacation is scientifically shown to benefit your health by reducing stress, increasing productivity, and promoting better sleep. To avoid office tiredness and burnout, it's in a company's best interest to promote frequent, if not necessary, vacations.
Facilities for Resting
Allow your staff to take breaks in a clean, safe, and pleasant place. This area might be as basic as a break room or as complicated as a conference room with other amenities.
Green plants in break rooms may boost productivity and enjoyment. Plants purify the air, decrease stress, minimize noise, and lower your risk of becoming ill.
Maintain a clean, quiet, and odor-free environment. Minor distractions in break rooms might prevent your employees from recharging their batteries for the remainder of the day.
Encourage People to Work Smarter, Not Harder
Ensure that your employees understand the concept of 'working smarter, not harder,' and that this is reflected across the company. You want the staff to perform a good job, not just get the job done. That doesn't always involve working too many hours.
Burnout in the workplace may be caused by a work environment that values long, hard hours above productivity and results. Working more hours does not imply that you will be more productive. Indeed, the increasing stress of work settings that encourage ongoing hard labor will lead to exhaustion, poor decision-making, workplace errors, and anxiety.
Eye Strain Reduction
Long periods of time spent focusing on the lights emanating from the computer screen may cause severe eye strain. Many individuals who work in offices are forced to wear glasses as a result of this. Other signs include headaches or impaired vision, in addition to weary or red eyes. Change the position of the monitor, add an anti-glare screen, or attach a monitor arm to protect your eyesight. Your eyes shall thank you in 10 years!
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
Carpal tunnel syndrome is perhaps the most well-known sign of office weariness. This is most often caused by poor typing or mouse methods, and it affects your fingers, wrists, and hands. Use a split keyboard, an ergonomic mouse, or wrist supports for both your mouse and keyboard to alleviate the pressure on your wrists and hands.
In Conclusion
Eliminating office fatigue from the workplace is necessary for the long-term health of employees. Nobody wants their staff to face burnout, be unhappy, or find zero motivation to work. It is important to keep an eye out for signs of office fatigue and implement innovative solutions to deal with the problem. This will benefit your business in the long term as well as keep your employees happier since they can see that you care!
