The cost of employee sleep deprivation to employers in the Czech Republic

GOALS: The goal of this thesis is to measure what is the impact of sleep deprivation on the productivity of employees in the Czech Republic, and how this loss in productivity translates into monetary losses to employers. The thesis uses a three-stage research design. First, existing literature on the topic is reviewed and theoretical background is established. Second, primary research is performed by conducting an online questionnaire to gather insights on the additional factors mentioned above. Lastly, monetary losses to employers resulting from the sleep deprivation of their employees were calculated. RESULTS: It was calculated that 61.16% of the population in the Czech Republic experiences sleep deprivation. This represents 3.2 million sleep-deprived individuals. The average decrease in employee productivity is 1.58%, with the average loss per employee per year of CZK 6,501. Yearly, this represents a total loss of CZK 20.8 bn to Czech employers. CONCLUSION: The impact of sleep deprivation on employees in the Czech Republic is quite significant. To mitigate the impact of sleep deprivation, employers should enable flexible working schedules where possible and promote healthy sleep patterns through employee education.