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Mandatory Lunch Breaks?
- October 26, 2012
- Did You See This?
- Comments
We’ve known for a while now that eating dinner together is no longer standard practice in many families. Now the office lunch break seems to be equally at risk.
With busy workplace schedules and ever-present technology, employees are less and less likely to leave their desks for a mid-day break. This is troubling not only from a nutritional point of view, but for other reasons as well.
Former Wall Street trader Frank Partnoy states, “One obvious reason to do lunch is to slow down and gain some perspective. If we burrow into work, and don’t come up for air during the day, we will have a hard time thinking strategically or putting our daily tasks into broader context.”
Partnoy asks, Should lunch breaks be mandatory? While this seems like a dramatic approach, the article lists several compelling reasons why lunch breaks should be either required or strongly encouraged. It’s an interesting question, and we’d like to hear what you have to say.
How do you spend your lunch break? Is getting out of the work environment for a period of time in the middle of the day important to you? Does it make a difference in your work performance, or in how you feel physically or mentally?
Tell us how you “do” lunch.
I work two different shifts during the week (a twelve hour night shift on Friday and Saturday nights and a 8 hour day shift on Wednesday). I find that I take minimal breaks on the day shift,as I feel that I don’t have enough time to get everything done compared to my twelve hour schedule. I take regular breaks on my night shifts, and feel so much better at the end of the night, compared to how I feel after my day shift where I feel like I am on a constant run all day.
I work in Dining services at the local University and have to take at least half hour break where I gather with a few of my Co Workers and we eat at the caff. on campus not always eating there food most of us still brown bag or in our case reusable lunch bag it because its healthier.. but I have found that without that break the stress gets to be too much by the end of the day.
My sister-in-law’s company outside NYC provides lunch (and sometimes other meals), which only encourages employees to remain at their desks. She is stressed out and overweight at this point, from over-eating and lack of exercise. A mid-day break and walk can make a huge difference in mental ability and mood!
I take my lunch and it at my desk 3 days/week. That way I can leave 1 hour earlier!
When I was working in an office I always tried to get out for a walk at lunch time; a bit of fresh air does wonders. But the social thing is also important – we were lucky enough to have a break area with sofas and a table, so we could eat in the office without having to desk-dine. It makes a huge difference, and that relaxed time chatting over lunch helped the team to mesh much better.
My husband is currently working in an office with no break area, so if he’s not buying lunch in the cafeteria, he has to eat at his desk. It’s a real loss. He always goes out for a walk on his lunch break as he can’t stand being cooped up in one place for so long, but most of the others just put up with it.