IT staff dream of a full night's sleep

Getting the recommended eight hours of shut eye a night is a dream to IT workers, who are suffering more sleepless nights than most other professionals.



Whether they stay up late or just can't sleep, IT workers get an average of six and-a-half hours kip a night, making them more sleep-deprived than lawyers and engineers.



Money worries from the credit crunch were blamed for keeping professionals awake, partly explaining why estate agents were the most sleep-deprived, compared to techies in sixth.



Worrying about work, planning how to make ends meet and keeping their families out of the red were the big issues that played on their minds the most.



Workers who fret in bed about how their job or finances may be hit in the economic gloom put themselves at risk the next day.



"Don't let the credit crunch keep you awake, it's a vicious circle," said Leigh McCarron, a director of Travelodge, which compiled the league table of sleep-deprived staff.



"You cannot afford to sacrifice your sleep quota. Losing valuable hours of sleep will certainly impact upon your well being and productivity."



The hotel chain's survey of 4,000 workers found that more than one-third of workers said they drift off to sleep thinking about work.



Others said that finishing work late, which meant they ate or drank past a resonable bedtime, was why they found it difficult to drift off.