Gen Z reports working longer hours, with worsening eye health
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Key takeaways:
- Employees reported an average of 96 hours of screen time per week, with more than a third coming from work.
- Most Gen Z employees reported longer hours, and 54% reported worsening eye health as a result.
New research from VSP Vision Care shows that 82% of Generation Z employees are working longer hours, including nights and weekends, and more than half report worsening eye health as a result.
“As an optometrist, the key takeaway for me is the number of respondents who reported having eye issues,” Valerie Sheety-Pilon, OD, VSP’s vice president of clinical and medical affairs for VSP Vision Care, told Healio. “Half of employees say they’re struggling with at least one eye issue. What’s more, the top three issues they report — blurred vision, eye strain/fatigue and dry itchy, eyes — are all linked to excessive screen time.”
According to a VSP press release, the survey polled 800 human resource benefit leaders and 800 full-time employees from U.S. organizations and highlighted issues such as increased screen time and symptoms of digital eye strain. Most employees surveyed worked entirely onsite (45%), while 19% worked remotely, and 36% worked in a hybrid arrangement.
Other key findings include:
- excessive screen time, with employees reporting an average of 96 hours per week and more than a third of that time coming from work;
- long work hours, with 69% of employees working longer hours, including nights and weekends, and 43% reporting worsening eye health as a result;
- generational impact, with 82% of Gen Z employees working longer hours and more than half (54%) reporting worsening eye health;
- remote work concerns, with remote and hybrid employees averaging more than 7 hours of screen time per day compared with 5.5 for onsite employees; and
- productivity loss, with 50% of employees reporting at least one eye issue, resulting in negative effects on productivity (63%), ability to focus (55%) and mental health (42%).
“It’s important to be cognizant of generational differences so we as doctors can customize care for each individual,” Sheety-Pilon said. “Where 82% of Gen Z employees vs. 69% overall report working nights and weekends, we can understand why this generation may have more instances of eye strain, dry eye and blurred vision related to increased screen time.”
The survey also found that on workdays, people spent about 91% of their waking hours looking at screens, a trend that remained high on weekends (74%). Excessive screen time was the top factor affecting employee eye health, the report stated.
“Employers play an important part in supporting the eye health of their workforce,” Sheety-Pilon told Healio. “By providing vision benefits as part of preventive health care plan offerings for employees, employers can enable and encourage their employees to receive regular checkups and better protect their overall health.”
Reference:
- Workplace Vision Health Report. https://go.bc.vsp.com/annual-report-2024. Published May 21, 2024. Accessed May 23, 2024.
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