Sharing communal meal breaks at work might be the health intervention you didn’t know your workers needed

Think about the last time you ate lunch at work. Did you sit with coworkers and talk? Or did you eat alone at your desk, scrolling on your phone, half-working?

If it’s the latter, you’re not alone. And according to a new guide developed by the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center’s Anjali Rameshbabu, Ph.D., that missed opportunity might be costing organizations more than they realize.

Disconnection from others can pose genuine health risks (yes, even for introverts). Research links loneliness to higher rates of heart disease, depression, and premature death. The former U.S. Surgeon General called loneliness an “epidemic,” that costs American employers an estimated $154 billion a year, mostly through sick days and employee turnover.

According to Rameshbabu, work is a great place to address loneliness. Most of us spend more waking hours with coworkers than almost anyone else. And that makes the workplace an ideal environment to build the kind of social ties that keep us healthy.

“Building social connection at work: A guide to designing meal breaks with intention” was developed by Rameshbabu and the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center to help organizations large and small implement communal meal breaks at their workplaces. The concept was tested with a group of hospital environmental service workers over a three-month trial. The results: workers who dined together felt more supported, better understood by their teammates, and generally more valued.

The guide acknowledges that every employer is different, and many have unique obstacles such as schedules, deadlines, and employee perceptions standing in the way of communal meal breaks.

The guide offers practical fixes: staggering breaks to maintain staffing coverage, adding a few extra minutes to ease the transition back to work, and perhaps most importantly, engaging leaders who consistently and visibly encourage the practice. 

What makes the communal meal break approach appealing is that it doesn’t require additional resources; it just asks leaders to be intentional about something that’s already baked into the workday. And given the documented costs of loneliness, sharing a table during lunch might be one of the simplest ways to reduce costs and improve employee wellbeing. So, at your next break, don’t eat at your desk, invite a coworker to bring their lunch and go outside. Working remotely? Make an online lunch date with a coworker or your team.

Download the resource here