Aussies call for afternoon siestas

Although the siesta is being phased in Spain, it looks like Aussie?s wouldn?t mind having a siesta during the day, and even 63% of boss saying that if it could make staff feel more alert and productive they would let them take a 20-minute power-nap during work hours according to a survey by Australia?s leading recruitment and human resources firm, Talent2.

50% of Aussie employees say they think taking a nap at work would make them more productive according to the survey of 1,960 people.

Female bosses are more understanding of the effects of sleepless nights on productivity with 72% saying they would allow the midday siesta compared to 67% of male bosses.

John Banks of Talent2 says that lost productivity through lack of sleep is costing companies a fortune. One study in the US showed that $18 billion dollars a year in lost productivity can be attributed to sleep deprivation.

"Showing employees that you understand they are not machines and allowing them to take a nap during the day is a great way of building morale and a team spirit for bosses."

"There are fantastic examples throughout history of world-leaders that have relied on power-naps. Winston Churchill used to plan his strategic meetings around his naptime Albert Einstein used to take afternoon naps to increase his productivity and Thomas Edison used to take frequent afternoon naps instead of sleeping at night".