Efficient shift scheduling for Canadian businesses

According to the Canadian Union of Public Employees, 11% of the Canadian workforce operates on shifts. This means having effective staff schedules is crucial for any business that wants to be compliant, prevent their workers from being overworked and burned out and meet their customer demand.

In some industries, such as healthcare, hospitality, and law enforcement, shift work is essential to helping business owners meet continuous service demands.

That’s why in this article, we'll break down everything you need to know about shift work, explore various options for shift scheduling and detail the benefits of using employee scheduling software to streamline your processes.

What is shift work?

Shift work is any work schedule that falls outside the typical 9-to-5 workday. These schedules include nights, early mornings, or rotating shifts with changing or the same hours each day. Shift work provides invaluable flexibility and staff hours for businesses that need round-the-clock productivity.

Shift work can be organized as either:

• Fixed schedules: Employees work the same shift pattern each week, for example, starting work at 8 am and ending at 4 pm, five days a week.

• Split schedules: Employees work two separate shifts with a long break in between, such as working from 8 am to 1 pm, resting from 2 pm to 4 pm and then resuming work again at 5 pm to 9 pm.

• Rotating schedules: Shifts rotate between days and nights on a weekly or monthly basis. So, some weeks, the employee will work daytime hours and other weeks, they will work nighttime hours. This helps create a balance, so some team members don't feel shortchanged by constantly getting unwanted hours.

• On-call shifts: Employees are available by demand to cover unexpected absences or increased demand. So, when your business is experiencing downtime, only a few employees will be at work and during peak periods, more employees can be called in to meet the increased need.

As an employer, you must provide your staff with breaks between shifts in Canadian jurisdictions. To ensure you're acting in line with employment standards, make sure you're scheduling at least the minimum required breaks between shifts.

For example, in Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta, employees must have at least eight hours of rest between shifts.

Advantages of shift work for employers and employees

Using the shift work pattern can be highly beneficial for both businesses and employees when managed correctly:

Some of the benefits of shift work for employees include:

• Learning opportunities: Off-peak shifts like night shifts and slow seasons often have fewer employees on site, allowing staff to expand their skills by taking up different tasks than they usually would on a traditional shift.

• Enhanced focus: With fewer distractions during off-peak and slow hours, it's easier for employees to focus without distractions so they pay more attention to their tasks, improving work quality.

• Shorter commutes: Depending on the time of day, traffic and public transportation are typically lighter and less crowded, especially for early morning and night shifts.

Benefits of shift work for employers include:

• 24/7 productivity: By incorporating night shifts, your business can maintain productivity around the clock and optimize employee's work hours without overburdening them.

• Meeting demand spikes: Night shifts allow for flexible staffing that meets sudden increases in customer demand.

• Flexible shifts for employees: Employees with varying responsibilities, like family, benefit from the flexibility to choose shifts that work for them.

• Continuous workflow: Shift work ensures tasks aren't left unfinished, as night shift employees can take over where the day shift left off.

Challenges of shift work

While beneficial, shift work also presents challenges, such as:

• Fatigue and sleep issues: Working too many night shifts can disrupt employees' sleep patterns, leading to fatigue. The more fatigued staff are, the more likelihood there is for potential errors. That's why it's also important to have a time tracking function to ensure employees take regular breaks.

• Communication gaps: Employees working at different times may experience less interaction, potentially negatively impacting team cohesion and increasing loneliness at work.

• Higher risk of injury: Long shifts increase ergonomic risks and potential injuries for employees who work physically demanding jobs.

Effective shift scheduling with employee scheduling software

Employee scheduling software can be a game changer for simplifying and managing shift schedules, allowing you to optimize productivity while ensuring compliance.

By setting clear shift schedules, you'll reduce the risk of overworking your staff, prevent scheduling conflicts, and maintain compliance.

Take Control of Your Staff Scheduling with BrightHR

BrightHR's employee scheduling software streamlines shift planning and schedule management, ensuring compliance and efficiency.

With tools that simplify shift scheduling and manage breaks, our software helps your business run smoothly and keeps your team in sync. Let BrightHR support your shift work needs with a powerful, easy-to-use scheduling solution.

Contact us at 1-888-220-4924 or book a demo today.