In many roles shift hours are something that you might have to consider. This can be retail, administration, call centres and general customer service, for example. Shift hours are when you are given a pattern of hours each week (which may change the next week if the employer needs them to) which don’t follow the conventional ‘9-5’ pattern. For example, you might be working 10-6 one day and 12-8 the next. You also might find you work some weekends and have days off in the middle of the week. So what are the benefits of working shift hours? This article will look at both the good and bad of shift hours to help you try and figure out if it’s right for you.
GOOD:
Less early mornings. If you’re not a morning person, shift hours might be right for you. You might have one shift per week starting at 8 or 9am and then the rest of your shifts will give you the chance for a lie in. This can be ideal for someone living alone who has no responsibilities. You might find that being able to have extra sleep in the mornings some days of the week allows you to be more efficient at work.
Some weekdays off. Sometimes working a normal 9-5 job can be frustrating because it stops you from accessing services on weekdays like doctor or dentists appointments, leading you to have to ask your boss for time off. Working shift hours is better in this way because you will often find you have one weekday off per week, allowing you to run your errands on that day and not have to take a cut to your pay or cause yourself any grief with your boss for taking time off.
One short day per week. Usually if you work shift hours you might find you work Sundays. As Sunday works differently in most places to other days of the week with regards to work hours, you might find you only work 5/6 hours that day, giving you one day per week that is shorter. This can be a nice respite especially if you find it in the middle of your work week. This usually means you will work longer days the rest of the week to make up 40 hours, however, so bare that in mind.
BAD:
Lack of a routine. If you’re the kind of person who likes to have a stable routine and schedule, shift hours might not be for you. There is very little stability with a shift hours role – hours can change from week to week causing you to always need a record of what shifts you are doing when. This can really throw off your sleeping pattern, too, since you might have to be up early Monday-Tuesday one week and then suddenly work from 12 on these days and be up early Wednesday-Thursday when you used to sleep in.
Some late hours. You will usually find with shift hours that you have to be at the office until late some days. Depending on the type of role you could be at work until as late as 12pm, for example if you are working in a supermarket that is open late hours. This isn’t always an issue for some people but for those who rely on public transport to get to and from work it might be worth considering if you are able to get home that late.
It can get confusing. If you work shift hours you might find yourself getting a little confused, especially in the beginning. This is because you will likely not work the same hours twice in one week, so you need to keep track of what hours you are working for each day. It might not sound too bad but compared to 9-5 routines when you know exactly when you need to be at work each day it can be a bit of a hassle. You might find in your first few weeks you end up being late because you think you start at 10 when you actually start at 9 and that can be quite stressful when you’re new to a job, so make sure you always have your timetable with you.
So there you have it, the good and bad of working shift hours. Hopefully this helps you to figure out if you are the kind of person who would like shift hours and the bad side of it doesn’t bother you too much. As always, good luck!
