Tuesday, January 31, 2012

THE SHIFT SYSTEM AT WORK

Irregular working hours are becoming more common in many industries, which inevitably create problems such as effects on health and social life. Very few people can adapt completely to shift work and irregular working hours due to disturbance in their BIOLOGICAL CLOCK and in daily life.

They are various reasons for adopting shift work. First, shift work is needed where continuous production cannot be interrupted for technical reasons. Second, shift work is adopted in railways, BOMBA, hospitals and other public services. Third, shift work is also use of costly equipment. In any form of shift work, workers grouped in separate crews work in turn to cover the whole operation time.

The effects of shift work are primarily dependent on shift systems. The effects are more significant when the system involves night work or does not allow a weekend break.

The main types of shift systems are:

· The discontinuous shift system : undertaking operates less than 24hours a day with a daily interval and usually a weekend break (Morning and Afternoon shift)

· The semi continuous shift system: the undertaking operates 24 hours a day but with a a weekend break.

· The continuous shift system: the undertaking operates 24hours a day and seven days a week.

The crews can be assigned to shifts either:

· By fixed shifts in which each crew s permanently assigned to the same shift

· By rotating shift.

In the case of rotating shift, the frequency of rotation from one shift to another is important. Crews may change shifts every week or at shorter or longer intervals. Numerous variations are possible, especially for continuous shift systems. There are also irregular shift assignments as in the case or train drivers or broadcasting stations.

BY

MOHAMAD AFIQ BIN MOHAMAD FUAD (B13 (A))

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