Duvet Days are a British phenomena that all of us should try to emulate. These are days that employees can take off work to preserve their physical and mental self. They were introduced in 1996 with the purpose of promoting rest, leisure and general psychophysical well-being. Also you can take one Duvet Day without warning every three months, however they don’t need to become a habit, but several British companies grant them, not only, many even encourage their employees to use it.
In the UK employers make no distinction between physical and mental health. However, in this case, Duvet Days have nothing to do with illness. To get a Duvet Days, you don’t have to lie and call in sick. Not wanting to get out of bed happens to everyone, maybe because it is raining and you have to catch up on sleep. Maybe you feel unproductive and need to disconnect by watching a TV series. On the other hand, it may be sunny and you want to go on a trip, spend time with the people (or pets) you love, or more simply, take a wellness break.
Benefits of the Duvet Days
The sleep specialist at Time 4 Sleep have recently investigated the Duvet Days’ benefits. Both employees and employers were very satisfied with the initiative. These days off increase productivity, motivation and loyalty to the company. So, it’s not just about being magnanimous. Deloitte estimated that neglecting employees’ mental health damages profit. On average, companies lose almost two thousand euros per employee in the private sector every year.
According to the Italian Society of NeuroPsychoPharmacology, mental problems affect 84 million Europeans per year. And 80,000 people die every year from mental illness and suicide. Numbers that should make us all think.
Obviously, for many mental problems a duvet is not enough, but it could be a good start.
