Impact of a change from an 8-h to a 12-h shift schedule on workers and occupational injury rates

Many industries find it necessary to operate 24 h per day, 7 d per week. Tr aditionally, industries have relied on 8-h work schedules that rotate on a weekly basis. In recent years, industries have begun implementing rotating 12-h schedules. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact on a g roup of production workers of changing from an 8-h to a 12-h rotating sched ule. Factors evaluated in the study included the frequency of occupational injuries, the impact on workers' health, social and family life, and their overall schedule preference. Results of the study indicated a strong prefer ence of the workers for the 12-h schedule with positive influences on the w orkers' subjective feeling toward health and social family life. The study also indicated that there was no significant change in the occupational inj ury rate.