Night Working Health and Safety Impacts: Insights and Recommendations.

Health and Safety Impacts of Night Working Trade Union Report Commissioned by RMT Authors: Prof Sian Moore (Anglia Ruskin University) and Dr Ruth Ballardie (University of Greenwich)

Night Work in the UK Rapid increase over recent years in number of night workers to 27% of UK workforce in 2022 (in 2017 19% of workers did shiftwork) Especially women (from 17% in 2017 to 44% in 2022) And proportionally more BAME workers Many industries traditionally reliant on shift and night work (including skilled and semi-skilled workers), along with growth in precarious workers doing night work

Night Work and Health Strong evidence of links between night work and cardiovascular, gastro-intestinal and metabolic disorders such as diabetes Weaker associations with cancer, reproductive disorders and mental health (e.g. depression) Link with cancer is dose-dependent (number and frequency of nights shifts, years of night shifts etc Gender differences e.g. women and hormone-linked breast cancer

Proposal causal factors: Circadian rhythm disturbance the body clock/s that regulated a range of bodily processes over a 24hr period in relation to cycles of light and darkness. Regulates sleep, body temperature, hormones, appetite, and digestion Sleep deprivation Social desynchronisation Interrelated to, and exacerbated, by poor diet and exercise Many people unable to adapt circadian rhythm to night work Night Work and Circadian Rhythm (biological)

Night Work and Families; Social Life Problems related to social desynchronisation Evidence of negative impact of night work on partner relationships including relationship breakdown Evidence of negative impacts on pre-adolescent children Evidence of negative impacts on social networks These impacts ameliorated by range of external factors e.g. access to extended family networks, affordable and accessible childcare, etc and workplace factors e.g. extent of worker control of rosters and flexibility

Night Work and Psychosocial Risks the railways run on overtime Psychosocial risks: factors in the work environment that can have negative impacts on workers physical and mental health eg excessive work demands, limited control over work, insufficient social support etc Specifically covered under H&S legislation Can exacerbate negative impacts of night work Eg in railways lack of staff means excessive work demands, no meal breaks, lots of overtime required - all exacerbating fatigue

Night Work Key Findings: Why do night work? Night work required as part of job Some advantages of nightwork financial pressures more reliant on night shift premia fits in with childcare (school runs) - in context of lack of affordable, accessible childcare For some - night work is less stressful due to reduced managerial surveillance and more autonomy Some report being night owls and prefer night work

Sleep deprivation and fatigue Poor quality, split or fragmented sleep of short duration (5hrs) related to circadian rhythm disturbances and external noise Difficulties in re-adjusting to normal sleep patterns when not working nights Sleep deprivation is cumulative over the number of nights worked Exhausted for several days following night shifts, including during annual leave; negative affects on their mood and potentially mental health. Poor fatigue assessments Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Fatigue, sleep and age Older workers reported sleep and fatigue became worse as they aged (from age of 40yrs onwards!) Sleep quality and duration worse with age (as in literature) Literature identifies that older wokrers less tolerant of night work Need rosters adjusted to account for age (as per HSE advice!) Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Recovery time following night shifts Recovery time required to recover from sleep deprivation and fatigue, and to readjust to different shift schedules Recovery time frequently insufficient and /or poorly scheduled in many rosters Evidence of HSE & ORR minimum recommendations relating to recovery time (and shift patterns) being ignored Recovery time from night shift is not a burden shared by normal day workers; eats into days off and annual leave Case for employer compensation for recovery time Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

HSE and ORR recommendations re night work not always being followed some of the guidelines are Need for fatigue risk assessments, non-punitive fatigue reporting systems and staff fatigue surveys (ORR). Max shift lengths of 10 hrs for night work (ORR) and 8hrs for safety critical, demanding or monotonous work (HSE) Limits on max door-to-door times (time to include travelling time to and from work) ORR/HSE Minimum 14 hrs rest periods between night shifts (ORR) Max of three consecutive night shifts before a rest day; HSE advises 2-3 night shifts followed by 2-3 rest days as minimum Where possible avoid permanent night shifts (HSE) Regular breaks away from work station (HSE) Control and limit overtime (ORR/HSE) Night Work Key Findings: HSE ORR minimum recommend ations

Fatigue, diet and exercise Many report struggling with maintaining healthy diets and exercise regimes dues to excessive fatigue and social desynchronisation Early morning cravings for high fat/ sugar foods or caffeine to overcome fatigue on nights Lack of good quality food or canteens provided by employers for night shift workers Many do not have time (or cover) to take contracted meal breaks which further exacerbates fatigue Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Fatigue and driving home Poor availability of public transport in early mornings at end of night shift Most drive home Many report accidents or near misses due to fatigue while driving Some decide risk not worth it so wait an hour or more for public transport (adds to sleep deprivation) Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Fatigue and 12hr shifts There is a trend towards more 12hrs shifts Many workers prefer 12 hr shifts due to more consolidated time off (however, still requires recovery time). Evidence in literature that performance decreases and fatigue increases after 10 hrs of working 12hr shifts with long commutes exacerbate fatigue risks Risk in safety critical industries Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers Families and social networks Frequent reports of negative impacts on partner relations include contributing to relationship breakdowns. Helped if partner understands impact of night work on worker and their availability Reports of some negative impacts on children dilemma is night work enables practicalities of school runs but may have negative impact on relationship quality all reported grumpiness and moody changes after night shifts. Many report difficulties maintaining social networks

Management and night work Increased demands for more night and weekend work in new contracts (HSE advice is to limit the amount of night work) Multiple reports that business needs are prioritised over workers needs and health. Lack of flexibility by managers in relation to rosters and in taking holidays Reports of occupational health assessment being ignored Reports of poor fatigue management practises Many workers taking annual leave to attend doctors, etc appointments Night Work Key Findings: Impact on workers

Night work: Workshop: Nightwork and Collective Bargaining Claims In small groups discuss the issue related to night work in your work area and develop two or three collective bargaining claims (or local actions within the current framework) that start to address these issues (about 20 minutes) Use the materials provided to write or draw comments and ideas. Ask someone to be spokesperson for the group to feedback back to the workshop What can be done?

Night Work : Undertake psychosocial risk assessments as required under H&S legislation to clarify impacts on fatigue (e.g. excessive overtime) and other issues related to night work Ensure HSE (and ORR in rail) minimum guidelines for night work are robustly implemented Review fatigue management strategies and processes and advocate for increased management accountability. Some recommend- ations

Night Work : Access to on-site OHS assessments and health checks with management accountability re: implementation of recommendations Union support for H&S Officers re: education of workers on risks of night work, support to engage with fatigue management and OHS systems and in negotiating rosters abiding by HSE and ORR guides Ensure sufficient recovery time and its appropriate scheduling, with recognition that this should be compensated (or paid for!) Minimise night work and oppose any extensions Some recommend- ations

Roster adjustments for older workers (reduced night work tolerance) needs to be normalised Permanent night workers at highest risk of negative impacts (many do not adjust their circadian rhythm) need education and amelioration including recovery time currently not provided Increase worker control of rosters and ensure roster flexibility for workers needs, esp. those with children and older workers. Crucial to ameliorating negative impacts on health and families Nationally unions should review night work premia and make a national minimum night work rate mandatory Night Work : Some recommend- ations