KELLOGG’S EMPLOYEES TO SEE THE LIGHT AND BEAT THE WINTER BLUES
- As the clocks go back cereal giant says businesses should consider following its lead and let workers come to work later or leave earlier to boost productivity and motivation in winter
FOOD giant Kellogg’s is helping its employees beat the Winter Blues by offering them the chance to shun the 9 to 5 and come to work later or finish early.
Kellogg’s allows its 660 UK head office employees to break the confines of a 9 to 5 day – when workers see very little if any natural daylight in winter – through its flexible working scheme.
Under Kellogg’s flexible working system workers can arrive for work at 10am and leave the office from 4pm* to help staff boost their daylight exposure.
The move by Kellogg’s comes as research conducted by the company has revealed that one in 10 workers in the UK say they see no natural daylight on a typical working day in November while one in three enjoy less than 30 minutes.
The sudden onset of short, dark days when the clocks go back, make the end of October one of the gloomiest times of the year and is when Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) symptoms can start to kick in.
Amazingly 1 in 20 say they don’t see daylight at all in a full working week and 4 in 5 say lack of daylight in the winter months has a negative effect on their mood, energy and motivation at work – with women suffering the most.
Kirsty Leyland, HR Director, said: “The results of this report into the UK workforce were a real eye opener to the detrimental effects daylight deprivation in the winter can have on mood and productivity at work.
“Our scheme offers employees the chance to make sure they use our flexible working system to see as much daylight as possible.”
The Kellogg’s report also revealed it is lawyers who may suffer the most from winter blues with a quarter admitting their long hours mean they don’t get to see any daylight at all in winter.
While Liverpool, Norwich and Southampton were exposed as daylight deprivation hotspots.
Notes to Editors:
- * Employees must work a contracted 36.6 hour working week
Flexible working is part of a wider benefits and rewards package to promote a better work life balance introduced by Kellogg’s for employees which also includes summer hours.
For more information and interviews please contact Louise Davies in the Kellogg’s Press Office on 0161 869 2942 or e-mail: louisej.davies@kellogg.com
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