Forty winks are a waste of time say bosses

Whilst a huge nine in 10 employees believe an hour’s Spanish-style siesta would enhance their performance almost the same number of bosses disagree.

These are the findings of Peninsula employment law firm who found that 78 per cent of bosses consider siestas to have a negative effect on workplace productivity.

Peter Done, managing director of Peninsula said: "Whilst most employers would probably think that the idea of allowing their staff to sleep during work hours as unnecessary and a liberty not worth issuing, they need to be aware that many employees find that during the afternoon hours their productivity levels drop. The argument on their grounds is that having a siesta can help to increase these drops in productivity and therefore help to reduce careless mistakes that some employees make. These mistakes often cost companies thousands of pounds to rectify."

Diet, said Done, also plays its part.

"Having a healthy diet and drinking plenty of water can help combat the afternoon blues which many employees go through after their lunch break.