The rat race of corporate life, the pressure of targets, and our technology-driven lifestyles have resulted in employees feeling more and more stressed out due to a mix of personal and work-related reasons. There’s little recuperation going on at home too, where it’s very easy to get sucked into online or mobile phone activities post-dinner, and before you realise the clock has struck 1am.

The above affects our sleep, which in turn affects our work next day. It’s a vicious cycle, but all too common.

Overworked employees are bad for your business, with consequences ranging from a loss of attention at work, compromised productivity, to work-related accidents – every employer’s nightmare. As an employer, such trends should makes you sit up and ponder how to deal with overworked or stressed out employees, to make sure their productivity is not affected.

Here are a few ways you can re-energise your employees and take the general energy levels in your office higher, positively impacting the overall productivity.

1. Encourage your employees to get plenty of rest.

Keep in mind the research that says sleep-deprived employees are more likely to underperform, falter, and in general engage in unethical behaviour, all of which will have direct consequences on their career and on your business.

Empathise with their problems, but drive home the importance of a good night’s sleep.

2. If you run a business that involves your employees driving around, delivering things, or dealing with physical machines, you can afford sleep-deprived employees even less. First, make sure that you only have the best safety equipment in the UK at your workplace for your employees. And second, since they are going to be driving on the roads, train them at least once a week on the importance of resting and de-stressing after each day’s work.

3. Encourage your human resources personnel to make the employees open up to them. Try to learn the reasons behind their lack of rest. Is it chronic stress? If so, is it to do with work-related reasons? Work politics? The monthly targets? If as management you can understand your employees’ problems and work together for solutions, it will be a win-win for all.

4. It’s not easy for people to change their habits. So be patient with them. Offer flexible work hours if the employee in question is good at their work but is having problems striking a work-life balance.

5. Having said that, there is only so much you can do. If you have an insomniac in your team whose work suffers much the other day despite being given plenty of chances, you may need to look for a replacement.