When it comes to working shifts, some are undoubtedly more difficult than others. Factors like sleep disruption, social isolation, and physical exhaustion can make certain shifts particularly taxing. So which shift is the most challenging to work? Here’s a quick look at some of the top contenders for the title of “hardest shift.”
The Overnight Shift
Working overnight, often from around 10pm-6am, is one of the most notoriously difficult shift patterns. There are several reasons why overnight shifts can be so tough:
- Disrupted sleep – Trying to sleep during the day against your natural circadian rhythms can wreak havoc on sleep quality and quantity. This sleep deprivation results in fatigue.
- Social isolation – With most people awake during the day, overnight workers often feel cut off from family and friends. This can take a psychological toll.
- Increased safety risks – Fatigue and disrupted circadian rhythms raise the risk of workplace accidents and injuries during overnight work.
- Health impacts – Long-term night shift work has been associated with health problems like obesity, heart disease, and gastrointestinal issues.
Overnight workers have to try to sleep when their bodies want to be awake, then work when their bodies expect to be sleeping. Fighting against natural biological instincts on a regular basis can be physically and mentally draining. That’s why overnight shifts are high on the list of most demanding shifts.
Early Morning Shifts
Shifts that start in the early morning, such as 5am-1pm, also come with significant challenges. A few factors make these shifts difficult:
- Wake-up fatigue – Waking up well before sunrise to get ready and commute to work can be hugely tiring, even for those who are not night owls by nature.
- Rush-hour commutes – Early start times mean commuting during busy rush hour traffic, which adds time and stress to the morning.
- Disrupted sleep – Waking up earlier curtails sleep duration, making it hard to get the 7-9 hours recommended for adults. This accumulated sleep loss takes a toll.
- Social impacts – Getting off work so early can make it hard to see friends and family in the evenings and participate in social activities.
Early morning shifts disrupt commutes, sleep schedules, and social lives. Workers starting their days while most are still asleep face physical and social challenges.
Split Shifts
Split shifts, with two distinct work periods separated by extended non-working hours, are also uniquely taxing. Some examples are working 9am-1pm and 4pm-8pm or 11am-3pm and 6pm-11pm. Challenges include:
- Long workdays – Split shifts can lead to very long days, with hours of unpaid time in-between work periods.
- Disrupted schedules – The split in work times can make it hard to plan out errands, appointments, and social activities.
- Beatdown effect – The return to work after just a few hours off can be mentally demoralizing and tiring.
- Blocked schedules – Holding such long blocks of time for work makes it hard for employees to make other commitments.
Split shifts can mean 12+ hour workdays, constant schedule juggling, and exhaustion from repeatedly restarting work. The fragmented nature of the shifts takes a toll.
Rotating Shifts
Working a schedule that rotates between day, evening, and night shifts can also be hugely difficult. For example: Working 7am-3pm one week, 3pm-11pm the next week, and 11pm-7am the week after. Challenges include:
- Circadian disruption – The constant shifting between day and night hours massively disrupts the body’s circadian rhythms and sleep-wake cycle.
- Social impacts – Successfully maintaining friendships, relationships, and family time can be nearly impossible with an erratic rotating schedule.
- Performance issues – The constant disruption often severely impacts performance and productivity levels.
- Health effects – Research links shift work disorders from rotating shifts to increased risks for gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and reproductive health issues.
Never allowing the body and mind to establish stable routines exacts a heavy toll. No wonder rotating shifts are a recipe for burnout.
Weekend and Holiday Shifts
While weekend and holiday shifts may be less frequent than weekday shifts, they bring their own challenges including:
- Social isolation – Weekend and holiday shifts often mean missing out on valuable time with family and friends.
- Schedule overlap – Trying to balance weekend shifts with social and family activities leads to tough schedule juggling.
- Irregularity – Because weekend shifts don’t happen every week, it’s hard for the body to establish regular sleep/wake cycles.
- Morale issues – Holiday shifts can be depressing and feel punitive when coworkers are at home celebrating.
Working weekends and holidays separates employees from gatherings and celebrations with loved ones, leading to loneliness and lowered morale.
Conclusion
When considering the physical, mental, and social demands, overnight shifts, early morning shifts, split shifts, rotating shifts and weekend/holiday shifts appear to be among the most challenging work schedules. The most brutal schedules disrupt circadian rhythms, curtail sleep, create social isolation, and interfere with life responsibilities. While any schedule can be made more bearable with policies that allow adequate rest, the sheer nature of these shift types makes them truly taxing. When evaluating your options, be aware that certain shifts come with much steeper costs than others.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the hardest aspects of overnight shifts?
The hardest aspects of overnight shifts are disrupted sleep cycles, social isolation, safety risks from fatigue, and long-term health impacts from prolonged night work. Fighting against your natural biological clock night after night can be grueling.
Why are early morning shifts so difficult?
Early morning shifts that start before sunrise are difficult because waking up so early causes significant sleep deprivation. These shifts also force commutes during busy rush hours and make it hard to have a normal social life in the evenings.
What makes split shifts so tough?
Split shifts lead to very long days with hours of unpaid time in between work periods. The fragmented schedule is hard to plan around and the return to work after just a few hours off can be exhausting.
How do rotating shifts impact workers?
Constantly rotating between day, evening and night shifts disrupts circadian rhythms and sleep cycles. This causes performance issues, health impacts, and major problems with maintaining any stable personal schedule.
Why are weekend and holiday shifts so hard?
Weekend and holiday shifts separate workers from family and social gatherings, leading to loneliness. The irregularity also makes it hard to maintain healthy sleep schedules.
The Pros and Cons of Common Work Shifts
| Shift Type | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional daytime (9am-5pm) |
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| Early morning (7am-3pm) |
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| Afternoon/evening (noon-8pm) |
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| Overnight (9pm-6am) |
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| Split shift (two work periods with a break) |
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| Rotating shifts |
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Employee Tips for Managing Difficult Work Shifts
If you’re stuck working one of the extra demanding shifts above, here are some tips to better cope:
- Maximize sleep when possible – Make sleep a priority by optimizing sleep conditions and maintaining a consistent schedule.
- Use bright light exposure – If working overnight, expose yourself to outdoor light during the commute home to help reset your body clock.
- See your family/friends when you can – Don’t isolate yourself, schedule mini-gatherings right before or after shifts when possible.
- Take melatonin – Taking supplements like melatonin can help regulate disrupted sleep cycles.
- Engage in healthy habits – Maintain as healthy a diet and exercise routine as possible to combat fatigue.
- Communicate with coworkers – Build camaraderie and social support with coworkers who understand the challenges.
While difficult schedules will always extract a toll, implementing lifestyle strategies to promote health and balance can help enormously.
Employer Tips for Supporting Demanding Shift Work
Employers who require difficult shift work from employees should support them by:
- Providing nap rooms for fatigued staff
- Rotating schedules fairly to distribute burden
- Offering extra pay for overtime and undesirable shifts
- Allowing frequent breaks to recharge
- Supplying free coffee and healthy snacks
- Ensuring workers don’t drive dangerously tired
- Promoting open communication between management and staff
While challenging schedules will always exist, managers can demonstrate care for employees by mitigating difficulties as much as realistically possible.
