First published on Thursday, June 25, 2020
Last updated on Tuesday, March 25, 2025
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It is well documented that shift workers face an increased risk of physical injury, psychological distress and chronic health conditions, as well as fatigue, stress and burnout. Shift workers, especially those working night shifts, have poorer health overall than those working more traditional schedules in inherently less risky roles.
The Fair Work Act 2009 and related awards agreements are the primary legal starting points for shift planning, focusing on maximum working hours, rest breaks, and minimum shift lengths. The Model Work Health and Safety (WHS) Act also emphasises the importance of protecting workers from harm, including risks associated with working hours.
What are the risks?
Biological effects:
Stomach problems including pain, indigestion, and ulcers
Heart issues such as coronary heart disease and hypertension
Reproductive complications for females who work shifts
Existing illnesses like diabetes and epilepsy get worse
Increased likelihood of cancer
Psychosocial effects:
Disturbed sleep which increases the risk of mistakes and accidents
Dependence on sleeping pills or stimulants
Heightened stress
Personal effects:
Challenging family life
Isolation because of missing out on social functions
How to assess the risks
It’s difficult to properly assess the risks of irregular work schedules without taking a hard look at your shift planning. You must ensure that employee schedules comply with all the legislation that safeguards shift workers.
As an employer, you have an obligation to not only assess risks but to make reasonably practical efforts to remove or manage those risks. A vital aspect of controlling shift work risks is to make sure you plan your work roster calendar to take account of how many hours your staff work and how these hours are allocated.
To assess shift work risks, you should:
Collect and evaluate information about your shift work practices
Decide what risks are present
Find out who may be at risk from shift work e.g. pregnant women, young people and staff with pre-existing health problems
Review the risk assessment at regular intervals
How to lessen shift work risks
A good way to minimise the risks that shift workers face is to design an effective employee schedule.
Excessive shift work and failure to provide enough rest breaks and rest days result in a higher chance of human error.
Use the HSE’s fatigue and risk index calculator to find out whether your shift schedule will cause fatigue. This tool helps you recognise the shifts that could result in exhaustion and injury.
Here are a few recommendations when designing employee schedules to reduce shift work risks:
Alternate shifts every two to three days
Try to stay away from shifts that start before 7am
Avoid scheduling shifts for longer than 12 hours
Schedule regular break times
Encourage staff to tell their GP that they’re doing shift work
How BrightHR can help you manage the risks that come with shift work
Roster planning is an important part of managing shift work risks. You can avoid employee shift fatigue by taking into consideration health and safety, your legal duties, business needs, and feedback from your staff.
Learn more about using a shift and roster calendar calendar maker to streamline your operations with BrightHR’s shift planning software.
Book a product demo or call our team on 1 300 029 198 today.
