Designing Shift Patterns: The Value of Staff Collaboration
Workforce rostering and shift pattern design has long been the backbone of many industries in the UK. From the NHS nurses working round-the-clock to warehouse operatives, transport drivers, and even the dedicated staff at your local pub, shift work keeps our nation ticking. But when did you last consider changing the strategy behind your work schedules? This blog will explore why staff collaboration in this process is vital.
What is a shift pattern?
In essence, a shift pattern dictates employees’ working and non-working periods. Shift pattern examples abound, from the staggered day shift patterns in retail to the day and night shifts in the emergency services. It goes beyond merely clocking in and out; it’s about ensuring optimal working hours, staff coverage during peak times, and a balanced work-life equation for everyone involved. We have created a selection of blogs which dive deep into the key shift patterns you should know.
The objective of a shift pattern is to ensure that the correct number of employees are working at the right time. For instance, a brick-and-mortar shop might require employees to work throughout the day, ensuring no downtime.
Designing these patterns is a challenging feat. Ensuring an efficient week cycle, accommodating diverse work days, and giving thought to consecutive days on or off are all part and parcel of the process. And here’s a little nugget of wisdom: involving staff in the designing process can be revolutionary.
Change is about inclusivity. No one appreciates unexpected shifts or being dictated to. Employees value having a say, especially regarding their shift pattern or roster, which rank only behind pay in sensitivity. Humans resist change, but when it’s inevitable, it’s crucial to have everyone on board and involved.
Simon Karios, Principle Consultant, Totalmobile
Benefits of Staff Involvement in Shift Pattern Design
Improved Employee Satisfaction
By offering a voice to the people, you’re promoting a sense of belonging and value. Tailoring work schedules to personal needs, whether family commitments, further studies, or simple preferences like morning or evening shifts, part-time working or longer shifts can drastically enhance job satisfaction. Think of it as a tailored suit – the better the fit, the more comfortable and content you are.
Increased Productivity and Efficiency
It’s no secret that an energised and happy employee is often a productive one. Suppose a warehouse operative is more of a night owl and thrives during the graveyard shift. In that case, their performance will likely be better than someone struggling against their natural rhythm – or the Window of Circadian Low.
By aligning work schedules with personal preferences, there’s a direct impact on employee well-being, service quality and overall productivity.
Reduced Employee Burnout and Turnover
Shift work can be gruelling. The chef paramedic working consecutive long weekends or the factory worker engineer juggling rotating shifts knows the toll it can take. However, when shift patterns are thoughtfully designed with staff input, it alleviates much of this stress. This helps reduce burnout and plays a pivotal role in retaining talent in the long run. Explore this article to learn how your shift patterns and rosters may be affecting employee retention and recruitment: Shift Pattern & Rostering Mistakes Harming Employee Retention.
In the vast landscape of UK shift work, the collaborative approach in designing schedules is not just beneficial – it’s transformative. But the question remains: how can organisations weave this collaboration seamlessly into their scheduling?
Strategies for Effective Staff Collaboration in Shift Pattern Design
The value of staff input in shift pattern design is clear. But the question on many managers’ lips is, “How do we do it effectively?”. Let’s look at a few strategies to kickstart shift pattern change.
Distributing Anonymous Surveys:
Why? To kick things off, it’s paramount to gauge the general sentiment and preferences of your staff. Anonymous surveys offer a safe space for employees, from factory workers to frontline NHS staff, to voice their true feelings without fear of repercussions.
How? Utilise digital survey platforms that allow for easy distribution and collection of responses. Craft questions that touch on preferred working hours, types of shift patterns (e.g., rotating shifts, 12-hour shifts), and any challenges they currently face.
Organising Focus Groups and Meetings
Why? While surveys offer breadth, focus groups dive deep. These allow managers to understand the nuances of employees’ preferences and challenges, giving insights that a survey might miss. They’re also a means to help people understand the need for change and to have an input into the design of what’s proposed, even different ways of working.
How? Assemble diverse groups of employees across different roles and seniorities, including any employee or trade union representatives. Facilitate open discussions and consider a shift pattern and rostering discovery session to ensure unbiased conversations.
Reviewing Workload and Activity Trends
Why? Historical data is a treasure trove of insights. It can highlight peak activity hours and help align resource availability to demand peaks.
How? Use rostering software to review past work trends. This will aid in identifying patterns and forecasting future staffing needs based on previous trends.
Identifying Peak Hours and Seasons
Why? Some industries have pronounced peak periods. Retail might surge during Christmas, while coastal resorts see a summer rush. Emergency services might experience peak demand on a Friday night, while demand for breakdown services are higher around commuting times. Knowing these peaks ensures adequate staffing during high demand.
How? Combine sales data, customer footfall, or service usage data with historical shift records to pinpoint exact periods of high activity. Consider future demand trends too if there’s likely to be any forecasted changes, and take account of unplanned demand too.
Allowing Shift Swap and Trade Requests
Why? Life is unpredictable. An employee might need sudden time off, or they might prefer working a different shift. Swapping shifts among peers can solve many scheduling conflicts without managerial intervention.
How? Implement a clear policy for shift swaps, ensuring both parties agree and that the swap adheres to labour laws regarding maximum working hours.
Key Considerations in Shift Pattern Design
The road to designing the perfect shift pattern is laden with many considerations. Beyond mere numbers and hours, it’s about moulding a work schedule that befits the company’s goals and the staff’s well-being. Here are some pivotal aspects to ponder:
Determining Optimal Staffing Ratios:
Why? Ensuring the right number of hands on deck is crucial. Overstaffing leads to increased costs, while understaffing results in service hiccups.
How? Analyse your busiest periods (from data discussed earlier), estimate the workforce required, and juxtapose this with staff availability. Regularly update these ratios as the business grows or as demand shifts.
Accounting for Seasonal Demands:
Why? Seasonal flux is real. Just ask any retailer during Black Friday sales, lifeguards during summer and a field engineer after adverse weather conditions. Understanding these peaks helps in pre-emptive planning.
How? Reference historical sales, work schedules, forthcoming promotion campaigns or service data to forecast busy periods. Accordingly, devise shift patterns that can flexibly scale up or down.
Acknowledging Individual Preferences:
Why? Every employee has a unique rhythm, from the shift manager to the care worker. Some may prefer the tranquillity of night shifts, while others might be morning birds. Some may prefer part-time hours, others a little flexibility around school drop-off times. Respecting these nuances can spike job satisfaction.
How? During induction or regular check-ins, have a system to capture shift preferences. You may also receive individual “flexible working requests” or hear this through your trade union or employee forums. While granting every wish may not always be feasible, this data becomes a valuable reference during scheduling.
Accommodating Time-Off Requests:
Why? Life events, whether a child’s graduation or a friend’s wedding, are moments to cherish. Offering a system that fairly addresses leave requests can bolster staff morale.
How? Implement a transparent leave request system, giving ample notice periods. Ensure a fair rotational method. This type of shift plan ensures the same people aren’t always working unpopular shifts and weekend cover. A shift swap system can work well for short notice requests too.
Complying with Labour Laws and Regulations
Ensuring that your shift patterns are in line with legal requirements is not just about avoiding penalties; it’s also about ensuring the well-being and rights of your staff members are upheld. UK Working Time Regulations (WTR) and guidelines set out by the Health and Safety Executive, provide a robust framework that employers should be intimately familiar with.
Limiting Weekly Working Hours
Why? Working Time Regulations stipulate that workers shouldn’t work more than 48 hours a week on average – typically averaged over 17 weeks – unless they opt out. Respecting these limits safeguards the health and well-being of staff.
How? Use shift scheduling and rostering software that automatically calculates the average working hours over the defined period, including overtime or additional hours. Allow employees to opt-out if they wish, but ensure that this decision is voluntary and not coerced. You must also keep records of the workers who have opted out and their hours.
Ensuring Rest Breaks and Periods:
Why? Working time rules mandate that workers have the right to a minimum 20-minute rest break for every 6 hours worked, an 11-hour rest between working shifts, and a continuous 24 hours without any work each week (or 48 hours without any work each fortnight). These breaks are crucial for mental and physical restoration.
How? Incorporate these breaks into shift patterns, ensuring they’re spaced appropriately. As a quick note, Digital scheduling tools can help flag potential breaches, providing proactive corrections. Note that some workers may be exempt from these rest rules, such as those working in security, emergency, or domestic services.
Acknowledging Night Work Restrictions:
Why? Night workers mustn’t work more than an average of 8 hours in a 24-hour period over a reference period. This regulation seeks to counterbalance the potential health ramifications of consistent night work.
How? When scheduling employees for night shifts, especially those in sectors like healthcare, production or security, ensure their aggregated hours adhere to this limit. To proactively address health concerns, offer health assessments to night workers in line with the WTR. You must also inform night workers of any risks and measures taken to protect them. For anyone who works nights (and their managers too), offer them practical advice on diet, exercise and how to manage their sleep to help them maintain their physical and mental well-being
Best Practices for Implementing Collaborative Shift Patterns
There’s a vast difference between good intentions and tangible results when setting up collaborative shift patterns. To bridge this gap, the following best practices can steer you towards operational success and elevated employee satisfaction.
Conclusion
Involving your staff in the shift pattern design process not only makes operational sense but also champions a culture of collaboration and respect. It’s a forward-looking approach grounded in the realities of today’s dynamic work environments.
The first step is to recognise the challenges, be it excessive overtime, productivity gaps impacting customer service, or shift patterns affecting employee wellbeing. But what next?
Shift Pattern Discovery Session
If your current shift patterns aren’t quite hitting the mark, or if you find yourself nodding along to some of the challenges above, then it’s time for a deeper dive. Totalmobile’s Shift Pattern Experts, armed with decades of experience, have curated a specialised Shift Pattern and Rostering Discovery Session. This initial session is tailor-made to help organisations swiftly identify potential efficiency gains, pinpoint challenges, and even chalk out a compelling business case for shift pattern changes.
So, are your shift patterns harmonised with your organisation’s aspirations and staff’s needs? If there’s even a hint of doubt, don’t hesitate. Get in touch with our team today to chart out your next steps.
