Washington, February 19:

Sleeping on the job goes against hundreds of years of American capitalism, but businesses here are flirting with ‘power naps,’ 20-30 minute siestas that many Europeans enjoy. Not surprisingly, other businesses see the power nap as an opportunity to sell chairs, cocoons, pods and other devices.

Take Yarde Metals, specialising in metal sales and distribution, whose 640 employees work round-the-clock, many running heavy equipment, like fork lifts. Such shops usually have a break room, vending machine snacks and coffee. Yarde has its own ‘Serenity Suite’ at its headquarters in the Northeastern US state of Connecticut.

“It takes the nap to the next level,” spokeswoman Susan Kozikowski said. “It’s full stress management.” The room has sky-blue walls to give the illusion of floating, and the ‘Z-lounge.’ “It’s a wide chair in a zero-gravity napping position.”

“Twenty minutes on this Z-lounge is equivalent to two hours of traditional meditation and four hours of sleep.” That is important for night workers, their health, safety and even productivity, she said.

“We run three shifts, people of different ages, some people working more than one job, they have children. For various reasons, for health reasons, they are tired and they need a break.”

A long-term study of Greek men and women published last week in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed that 30-minute mid-day naps can dramatically reduce heart disease. “The study makes sense,” said Washington University psychiatry professor Peter Vitaliano.

“There is a huge difference in how napping is accepted in Mediterranean countries — like Greece, Italy and Spain — versus the cutthroat, boiler-room pressure to be competitive in the United States,” said the Seattle professor.

“Here, if a person naps, people say, ‘You lazy slob.’ There they say, ‘Did you have a good nap?” First to adopt the siesta were transportation businesses, airlines and railroads. Some hospitals, universities and publicity agencies set aside a nap room.

“Here in the US it’s more work oriented and they don’t really grasp the concept of a good siesta yet as in Europe and Latin countries,” said Iarl Grant, executive assistant of Strawberryfrog, a New York advertising agency founded in the Netherlands.

Grant said companies give employees 10-minute cigarette breaks but have no place for a 10-minute nap. Strawberryfrog has been using a sleep pod for a year, with headphones. “Every one uses it,” he said. “It’s a really valuable tool. It’s become a natural part of the day.” The sleep pod was created by MetroNaps specifically for workplaces.

“It blocks out enough light and enough sound to get rest even in a busy work place,” said MetroNaps co-founder Arshad Chowdhury. “You can nap in a dignified position with some privacy,” he said. “It’s not flat so people who take a nap are not lying in a fetal position. Nobody wants to be seen in a fetal position at work,” said Chowdhury.