{"id":40514,"date":"2018-03-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newrcblog.wpengine.com\/4-business-tips-to-help-your-employees-adjust-to-daylight-saving-time\/"},"modified":"2020-08-12T17:11:01","modified_gmt":"2020-08-12T17:11:01","slug":"4-business-tips-to-help-your-employees-adjust-to-daylight-saving-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/us\/en\/blog\/4-business-tips-to-help-your-employees-adjust-to-daylight-saving-time\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Business Tips to Help Your Employees Adjust to Daylight Saving Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s an ongoing debate over daylight saving time (DST). Is it really good for business?<\/p>\n

The DST Pros<\/strong><\/p>\n

For a long time, the Chamber of Commerce has been the most vocal in pushing for longer periods of DST. This is because studies have shown that consumers are more inclined to go out and spend when there is daylight after office hours<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They actually succeeded in that. The US Energy Policy Act of 2005 extended the start of DST from the first Sunday of April to the second Sunday of March as a means to save more energy.<\/p>\n

The DST cons<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the other hand, critics are all too happy to tell you about the drawbacks. Chief among them: \u00a0compromised productivity and increased risk for workplace injury<\/a>. After all, this practice translates to employees losing an hour of sleep. As if that is not enough, employees also tend to cyberloaf\u2014that is, use the internet for non-work activities\u2014after DST is set in motion. Any gains from DST are potentially undermined by this.<\/p>\n

Even the supposed savings from using less energy on lighting turns out to be inaccurate. Sure, you don\u2019t spend as much on lights. But you do<\/em> spend more on air-conditioning because of the warmer weather<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The gist of the criticism is that DST is just not worth it.<\/p>\n

The reality of DST<\/strong><\/p>\n

Of course, whether it is good for your business is neither here or there right now. DST is still practiced. It\u2019s coming up, in fact. You just have to deal with it.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, you can take some measures to offset any negative effect DST might have. Help employees adjust and stay healthy by doing the following.<\/p>\n

Remind your employees of the DST change<\/strong><\/h2>\n

You might be asking why you should have to remind your own staff of something that happens every year. However, this isn\u2019t simply about making sure your people remember that DST is coming up. It is also about mentally preparing them.<\/p>\n

\"Remind
Provide employees with regular reminders weeks before DST to mentally prepare them for the upcoming change<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By constantly sending reminders, you\u2019re encouraging their subconscious brains to anticipate the change. Even if they do nothing with the information, the knowledge will still prepare them for the adjustment. It\u2019s better than having them face the shock when DST is applied.<\/p>\n

Implement flexible schedules<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Review your work schedules. Do all your employees need to be in the office at certain hours? If not, then why not implement flexible hours to help them adjust to the lost hour of sleep?<\/p>\n

[tweetshare tweet=” Allow your staff to be a little early or a little later than usual, as long as they can complete 8 hours in the office. Some companies even let their employees leave as soon as they deliver what they need to.” username=””]You can start by not having a fixed start to the day. Allow your staff to be a little early or a little later than usual, as long as they can complete 8 hours in the office. Some companies even let their employees leave as soon as they deliver what they need to.<\/p>\n

This eases the pressure of having to wake up an hour earlier just to get to work on time. And who knows? You might even find that flexible schedules increase staff productivity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Allow remote work<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If your business can run smoothly with flexible schedules, there\u2019s a chance that remote work might also be a benefit. This makes it easier for employees to adjust to DST, as they can remove commuting from the equation.<\/p>\n

You wouldn\u2019t even have to worry about managing remote employees. With a RingCentral business phone system<\/a>, it\u2019s almost like they\u2019re not out of reach. After all, you can:<\/p>\n