Talk:Shift work

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I would like to see first shift, second, third, etc. redirect here with an explanation of what these usually mean. First seems to be the usual daytime 8 hour, second the afternoon to night time 8 hour, third is the night to morning 8 hour.

Also, work shift seems to be the same exact article, with less content. I put merge templates on both pages for now. - Stoph 05:42, 9 November 2005 (UTC)

the graveyard shift part is dead wrong (heheheh) that is an urban legend and has no basis in reality saved by the bell refers to boxing (the bell signling the end of the round) -alexthegreater 23:20, 6 April 2006

Graveyard shift does not make the sand in the eyes, and clammy skin. I work 5:00 pm - 1:30am and I'm fine, and my coworkers work 12:00am - 8:30am and they are fine with it. Perhaps that's where the term came from though, as "normal" shifts are 8-4:30/9-5:30 whcih to me is way too early. ;) Fr0 03:47, 14 May 2006 (UTC)

The sentence about sand in the eyes and clammy skin is basically a quote (taken from the linked page). I have changed the text of the sentence slightly to make it verbaitim, and added quotation marks. I agree with Fr0... the 0800-1600 shift would be most likely to give me clammy skin and sand in the eyes! All this clammy skin stuff is slightly POV, but I think it is quite acceptable within a quote, the primary purpose of which is to indicate the origin of the phrase. TomH 20:29, 26 May 2006 (UTC)

"Swing shift" also means a rotating shift in a 24/7 organization such as a police department--third-second-first or first-second-third--filling in on days off for the three shifts.--Buckboard 14:01, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Health Consequences

I find the Health Consequences section a bit unclear... here is an example to illustrate why:

ACME Widgets runs a factory with three different shifts; by definition it uses a shift work system. Its factory-floor workers work specific shifts, and can therefore be said to be doing "shift work". Albert is one of those workers; he is employed on the day shift and works 0800-1600. Bernie works for a rival company, who do not use a shift-work system; he generally works "business hours" of 0800-1700. Albert is doing "shift work" and Bernie is not -- but the only actual difference in their working hours is that Albert finishes work one hour earlier than Bernie. How on earth can this put Albert at greater risk of cluster headaches and heart disease?

I think the confusion stems from a subtle difference in meaning... The page defines shift work as an employment practice applicable to a workplace. But in this section "shift work" apparently refers to some effect of a shift work system on an individual worker. But what effect? Is it working night shifts that causes these health problems? Or working shifts that interfere with the worker's natural sleeping time? (these last two are not the same for everybody)... Maybe it is having to periodically change shifts...

TomH 21:17, 26 May 2006 (UTC)

I have to admit that this section makes me uneasy also, but for a different reason; as per WP:V, I think that the Citation for that perticular study by Knutsson falls short of the mark.
-The Lancet website does not keep records of issues from 1986
-There is no proof the study actually transpired.
Is anyone else able to independantly verify the citiation ? Exit2DOS2000•T•C• 02:13, 20 August 2007 (UTC)
This article looks worth a look (If you go to the bottom of the page it seems to be available on a free registration). TerriersFan 02:51, 20 August 2007 (UTC)
I am going to wait a while before doing anything. Hopefully someone can find a copy of the original Cite before I try fooling with re-Cite'ing to a different study Exit2DOS2000•T•C• 03:05, 20 August 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Hoot owl shift

If an editor wants this added then that's fine provided it is referenced, otherwise it will be removed. TerriersFan 17:13, 16 June 2007 (UTC)

Please provide evidence that the term "graveyard shift" is notable. The only place I've ever heard that term is in geek-dominated jobs like convenience store clerks and tech support and whiny minority dominated urban jobs like janitors. In real mens' jobs like longshoremen, loggers, and coal miners, the term is "hoot owl shift". Either provide some evidence that "graveyard shift" is even a legitimate term (with citations from pre-1965 sources) or it will be deleted. Puppy Mill 00:59, 17 June 2007 (UTC)
This is only anecdotal, formally, but it is true. In the 1950s (at least), at Boeing in Washington State, draftsmen, engineers and model builders worked days, swing shift or graveyard. I know for certain that these are the terms the workers used. Whether their employer also used them could perhaps be confirmed, or not...
I've never before heard of the "hoot owl shift". Hordaland 14:57, 1 December 2007 (UTC)
Why pre-1965? It may surprise you to learn that jobs involving prolonged exposure to a keyboard are nowadays also classified as "work" and some of these computer-input-operation-assistants are even paid for their time. Leushenko (talk) 14:34, 6 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Citations

I have removed the following untill such time as a citation can be provided for this seemingly direct opinion:

“ Paying a shift premium is a huge mistake, according to John Frehse of Core Practice Partners. Trying to solve a scheduling problem by paying off employees (and not paying them much) is a recipe for continued turmoil and does not solve the root issue. Better schedules are the answer. ”

I am John Frehse and am an expert in shift work and labor strategy. It is a specific area of expertise, but I write for national magazines. Please review the article It's Not About the Money on my website at http://www.corepractice.com. It uses facts to prove substantiate my quote. I apologize for my ignorance on Wikipedia protocal. I am sure I made some mistakes. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.161.159.242 (talk) 05:09, 31 March 2008 (UTC)