Working shiftwork in Michigan

If you're interested in the 24/7 world of shiftwork like I am, you can't get enough of seeing coverage of the media covering shiftwork issues. I found this article, "Up all night," in The County Press (Lapeer, Michigan, USA). It discusses the demographics of who works what kind of shiftwork -- second shift, night shift, irregular shifts. The reporter interviewed a couple of local shiftworkters.

"One of these people is Matt Bennett, 27, of Grand Blanc, who is a dispatcher for Lapeer County Central Dispatch. Since June of 2006, he's worked 10-hour shifts from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. His shift will include working four days in a row, then getting time off, working five days in a row, and more time off. Once a month, he gets six consecutive days off."

Chicago police department considers 12-hour shift work schedule

Police in Chicago (Illinois, USA) are considering moving to 12-hour shifts and a 3-day work week. Among the benefits potential benefits cited are more time to decompress with family, and the fact that after a longer shift, off-duty officers are less likely to go out drinking after work.

The Fraternal Order of Police is advocating a schedule that involves 6 days on and 3 off with an 8-hour shift work schedule, but says it is open to the 12-hour shift proposal.

As we've noted in previous posts to this blog, many police departments are moving to 12-hour shifts, often at the behest of officers or their unions.

The Chicago Sun-Times has more information on this in their article 12-hour shifts, 3-day week for cops? New boss considers change that could cut down on drinking after work which appeared in the February 13, 2008 paper.

Other recent National Shiftwork Information Center posts on length of shifts for police departments:

* Police officers fight to keep 12-hour shift schedule
* Another police force embraces 12-hour shifts
* Police change to work 10-hour shift

Other police-related shiftwork posts can be found at: http://shiftworkinformation.blogspot.com/search/label/police

Police change to work 10-hour shift

Police in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada have changed to a 10-hour work shift schedule. The schedule is designed to reduce overtime and increase the number of officers on duty at peak hours of the day.

This sort of variable staffing is common in operations with uneven demand throughout the day.

The story appears in The Thunder Bay Source.