NSC Fatigue Reports

Fatigue is increasingly recognized as a problem affecting the workforce. Research shows 13% of workplace injuries can be attributed to fatigue, a dangerous byproduct of a society that operates 24 hours a day. The National Safety Council has created a series of reports to examine this issue and make recommendations for fatigue management and mitigation. All reports are free to download.

Managing Fatigue

Managing Fatigue: Developing an Effective Fatigue Risk Management System outlines fatigue issues faced by employers and recommends specific actions they can take.

Even in ideal circumstances, fatigue will be an issue for some portion of every organization’s workforce. This report defines fatigue, discusses its effects on the workplace and makes recommendations for implementing a fatigue risk management system. These systems include education, sleep disorder screening, policies and practices, environmental changes and more.

Tired at Work

Tired at Work: How Fatigue Affects Our Bodies explains the biological and environmental causes of fatigue in the workplace and details the effects on workers' performance, safety and health.

Fatigue – the feelings of tiredness, reduced energy and increased effort needed to perform tasks – makes it difficult to think clearly and react quickly. In workplaces, fatigue decreases productivity and increases risk of injuries. While the signs may not be obvious, fatigue is a safety risk in the workplace, and nearly every worker in America is at risk.

The Cost of Poor Sleep

Calculating the Cost of Poor Sleep: Methodology outlines the data and processes used to develop the NSC Fatigue Cost Calculator.

The Brigham and Women’s Hospital Sleep Matters Initiative and the National Safety Council developed the calculator that estimates the cost of sleep deficiency for individual businesses. Users enter their workforce size, industry and location. This information is used to predict the prevalence of sleep deficiency and common sleep disorders among employees. The calculator draws from peer-reviewed scientific literature to further estimate costs associated with these conditions.

Employee Fatigue

Fatigue in the Workplace: Causes & Consequences of Employee Fatigue breaks down a probability-based survey of more than 2,000 working adults and their experience with fatigue.

The report shows that 97% of workers have at least one workplace fatigue risk factor and more than 80% have two or more. When multiple risk factors are present, the potential for injuries on the job increases. Fatigue can have detrimental effects on a person's health and safety both on and off the job. This report educates employers on this critical safety issue.

Risky Employer Practices

Fatigue in the Workplace: Risky Employer Practices looks at workplace practices and policies that contribute to worker fatigue, such as night shift and overtime scheduling, lack of time off between shifts and a lack of rest areas.

Key survey findings include the number of employers who are concerned about fatigue’s effect on employees, and what practices they are currently following to mitigate and manage fatigue.

Fatigue in Safety-Critical Industries

Fatigue in Safety-Critical Industries: Impact, Risks & Recommendations evaluates NSC survey data to identify areas of higher risk for Construction, Manufacturing, Transportation and Utilities industries. This report discusses challenges faced by safety-critical industries and offers solutions.

Watch: High-level Findings From Fatigue Survey Reports