WORKING NIGHT SHIFT

 

While many focus on the potential health risks of working the night shift, there are a lot of factors which must be considered when deciding whether a night shift job is best for you. Some of the pros and cons of working the night shift are:-

NIGHT SHIFT ADVANTAGES.

More Pay.

One of the best perks of working a night shift job is the pay differential. Pay differential or shift differential is a fancy phrase for receiving extra money for working an “irregular” shift. Your pay differential will depend on your specific job.

No traffic jam, shorter commute times.

Working a night shift means you can avoid the normal rush hour traffic.  If you spend on average 30 minutes commuting one way to work, that adds up 60 minutes per day. Assuming you have a normal number of work days, 261 per year, you’ll be spending 15,660 minutes every year commuting. This is roughly equal to 10.88 days spent commuting every year. 

Peace of mind.

When you are working at 4 am, there are no distractions. There is a lot less chatter, meaning you can focus on your work. Speaking from experience, this peace and quiet is invaluable. When it is the early, early morning, you get the most work done and feel “locked-in.” You will also have the time to build new skills.

Less stress.

This, of course, depends on the job you do but more often than not, working the night shift means less clients and less meetings. Less meetings usually means less stress!

Building your reputation at work.

By working the night shift, you can show your co-workers that you are a team player. One thing you would have noticed from working the night shift is that your co-workers tend to recognize the fact that you work the odd hours and they are incredibly accommodating because of that. Night shift workers are doing critical jobs and thankfully, that important work is sometimes recognized.

NIGHT SHIFT DISADVANTAGES.

Sleep schedule and circadian rhythm changes.

Probably the biggest disadvantage to working a night shift job is how your entire sleep schedule will need to be transformed. If you are working a 7 pm to 7 am shift, you will have to start going to bed around 9 am and waking up around 5 pm just to get 8 hours of sleep. This means you will be asleep for the entire normal work day.

It can be difficult to sleep during the day particularly due to the sunlight and also noises outside. These sleep schedule changes roll into our next night shift disadvantage.

Missing out on social events.

When you are sleeping during the day, your social life may suffer. How can you prevent this? You have to be proactive about prioritizing spending time with friends. One big advantage of working a night shift job is that often you work three days in a row, then have 4 days off. Because of this schedule, you can take the other 4 days to spend time with friends, possibly over brunch or later in the evening.

Fewer opportunities to network at work.

Due to night shift workers usually interacting with fewer co-workers, there are fewer opportunities to build relationships and to network. This can be a problem if your goal is to get to know all of your co-workers. Night shift workers will have to make extra sacrifices to be seen and known around the office. Team meetings are also often in the middle of the afternoon.

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