Posted by SFC Army on December 19, 2008 at 23:23:38:In Reply to: 24/7 Rotating shift schedule posted by spiritag on February 28, 2008 at 19:49:33:
I have two possible schedules for you.
Item #1)
A 4 on, 3 off/3 on, 4 off schedule works well.
It is a 12 hour shift (0600-1800) and provides time off for families and appointments. The problem with it is that it is difficult to know where to best break up the schedule to allow for weekends. But if you talk to your folks, ask them who is best set up to work those days, it helps. Ask them which team they prefer, A or B.
Those with children will probably need weekend off to accomodate school schedules. Those without children have more flex in their time off.
Item #2)
A two week rotating schedule:
WEEK 1 IS O/O/W/W/O/O/O
WEEK 2 IS W/W/O/O/W/W/W
It is better if you talk to your workers to find out who is best set up to work nights - or if they want to rotate days/nights (usually 1 month).
We have one team that rotates and one team that doesn't. Single folks may want to stay on the night schedule, so they can "do stuff" during the day; while those with small children will need to stay on day shift in order to sleep (there is no sleeping when a toddler is awake in the house).Ultimately, you HAVE TO TALK TO YOUR WORKERS to determine which is the best schedule for the teams and the people. And you will have to work the shift when that person needs to take leave/vacation - so don't make it unbearable.
I personnally recommend the 3on/4off schedule - it is much easier on the families and provides more cohesive time off, better planning for birthdays, anniversaries and such.
Good Luck!