Best work schedule maker4/9/2024 We believe that the differing conclusions stem from comparing dissimilar situations. A good place to review the research is a report by the Police Foundation called The Shift Length Experiment. Some researchers have concluded that the longer shifts were detrimental to productivity and safety others say that things got better after workers changed to 12-hour shifts. The more you read on the subject, the more confused you get. Managers are sometimes reluctant to adopt 12-hour shifts because they believe alertness and productivity decline after 8 hours of work. If there is a high absence rate, this can defeat the primary advantage of the longer shifts, namely more days off. Instead of holding someone over to cover an absence, the organization now must call someone in from a scheduled day off. Unless the organization is able to balance the paychecks, employees will find this tough to budget for. For example, with one on-off pattern there are four consecutive 48-hour weeks followed by four consecutive 36-hour weeks. Depending on the schedule selected, these may not occur in alternating weeks. Half the work weeks will be 48 hours and half will be 36 hours. This leaves little time for anything but eating and sleeping. Not only is 12 hours a long time to work, but if you add in commute time and meal breaks, this can be a very long day. Other disadvantages of 12-hour shifts are: Employees who are older, have childcare concerns, are going to school, have second jobs, or participate in other non-work activities on work days often prefer 8-hour or combined 8 & 12-hour shift schedules. While longer shifts are certainly popular nationwide, they are not the unanimous preference of all shift workers. This includes things like the elimination of double shifts to cover absences and the elimination of afternoon shifts (an unpopular shift for employees with families). Longer breaks mean more time to recover from the sleep debt incurred while working the longer shifts. And, by strategically taking 48 hours of vacation, the break can be extended to as much as 2 full weeks. In contrast with most 8-hour shift schedules that provide a maximum of 4 days off, 12-hour schedules can provide up to 8 consecutive days off. Unlike the 8-hour schedules, this can be achieved under a variety of configurations with a maximum of 4 consecutive days of work. The maximum possible number of full weekends off with 12-hour shifts is 26 per year. 8-hour schedules that feature 5 or 6 days of work in a row only provide 5-6 weekends off per year. The most common schedules that accomplish this require employees to work 7 days in row. The maximum possible number of full weekends off with 8-hour shifts is 13 per year. Benefits of the extra days off include reduced commuting expenses, less need to take paid time off for doctor appointments, school meetings, or personal activities, and improved morale as a result of better work/life balance. These numbers are based on 4-crew schedules with level coverage requirements. With 12-hour shifts, there are twice as many (182 days off per year). In a 24/7 operation with 8-hour shifts, there are 91 scheduled days off per year. Reasons for the popularity of 12-hour shifts among shift workers: Roughly 90% of the time, the highest-rated schedules consist of 12-hour shifts. The options we show employees typically include one or more 8-hour, combined 8 & 12-hour, and 12-hour schedules. By educating employees about the various possibilities, they are able to make more informed choices from the schedule alternatives. With each of our larger clients, we show the workforce several different schedule options that satisfy the client’s business coverage requirements. In surveys of over 20 thousand shift workers, 74% said they would like to work more hours a day in order to get more days off each week. After that, we'll discuss a couple of scheduling issues related to 12-hour shifts. However, some managers still have reservations due to concerns about safety and productivity. Longer shifts have become increasingly popular with workers in 24/7 operations.
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