Too stressed to sleep? Downsizing, job insecurity and sleep behavior
1Zeppelin University, Germany.
Economics and Human Biology
|September 23, 2023
Summary
Workforce downsizing negatively impacts employee sleep quality and quantity. Perceived job insecurity is a key factor driving this decline, affecting worker well-being and productivity.
Area of Science:
- Sociology
- Occupational Health
- Economics
Background:
- Workforce downsizing, while improving firm efficiency, can compromise employee job security.
- Sleep is a critical biological function essential for health, productivity, and overall well-being.
- The impact of downsizing on sleep remains an under-researched but significant area.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of workforce downsizing on sleep quality and quantity.
- To explore the mediating role of job insecurity in the downsizing-sleep relationship.
Main Methods:
- Utilized German survey data for empirical analysis.
- Employed three distinct measures of downsizing to address endogeneity: firm-level workforce reduction, industry-level dismissal rates, and national downsizing news.
- Applied instrumental variable estimation to assess the impact of perceived job insecurity.
Main Results:
- All three measures of downsizing were significantly associated with poorer sleep outcomes.
- Perceived job insecurity was identified as a strong predictor of insufficient sleep.
- Job insecurity mediates the relationship between downsizing and sleep deterioration.
Conclusions:
- Workforce downsizing poses a significant threat to employee sleep health.
- Interventions aimed at reducing job insecurity may mitigate the negative sleep impacts of downsizing.
- Further research is warranted to understand the long-term consequences of sleep disruption due to corporate restructuring.
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