Errors, oversights and misjudgements caused by fatigue can spell trouble for both safety and productivity. 

Whether it’s a hospital doctor who’s worked a 24-hour shift, a driver who’s been too long behind the wheel, or an operator of heavy machinery at the end of an 80-hour week, the situation can too easily slip into the proverbial ‘accident waiting to happen’. Whatever your business, to keep your operation running smoothly, this is not something you need. 

Many industries now operate around the clock – for example, health and community services, law enforcement, transport, communications, manufacturing, and, increasingly, the retail and entertainment industries. Ever-increasing engagement in online transactions, technological developments, and community demand provide powerful incentives for working non-traditional hours.  

Organisations with international communications through online services now require employees to work non-standard hours to coordinate with people in other time zones. 

Shiftwork, night work, and extended shifts allow employers to maximise production and ensure that essential services are provided to the community 24/7, but there is increasing recognition that this can involve deficits to productivity and risks to health and safety, especially in combination with non-work-related factors. 

Adverse effects on safety 

It’s well-known that fatigue reduces a person’s ability to do whatever job they’re doing safely and effectively. More than mere drowsiness, fatigue can amount to a degree of physical and mental exhaustion that is severely debilitating, and likely to result in a higher level of accidents and injuries, especially if someone is operating a vehicle or machinery, or undertaking critical tasks that demand a high level of concentration. 

For example, you wouldn’t want to be in a plane subject to the vagaries of a pilot or air-traffic controller who was half asleep. 

It’s a particular problem for people undertaking work at a time they’d normally be sleeping. 

Adverse effects on health  

You might think fatigue is simply par for the course, an inconvenience you can get over on the weekend. But in reality, it can raise your risk of longer-term health effects including heart disease, diabetes, lower fertility, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, and gastrointestinal disorders. 

You’re better off without any of these ill-effects on their own and remember they can compound each other, too. For example, high blood pressure can raise the risk of a heart attack or stroke, which in turn is likely to lead to anxiety. 

Adverse effects on productivity 

Clearly, someone who is not ‘firing on all cylinders’ is not likely to be in top form when it comes to the efficiency and productivity with which they do their work. The downside for productivity is mediated through difficulties concentrating, impaired decision-making, and a reduced capacity to engage effectively in communication with others. 

Fatigue and WHS laws 

Employers and others conducting a business or undertaking must manage the risks involved in the job, as far as is reasonably practicable.  

With fatigue, this means identifying the factors that might cause fatigue in the course of the work, controlling those risks using the most effective control measures reasonably practicable in the circumstances, and reviewing the control measures to ensure they’re working as planned. 

The risk management process is more effective if the issues are discussed with workers, and staff is encouraged to identify fatigue risk factors and implement effective control measures. Consultation is a legal obligation under WHS laws, and it also helps to raise awareness about the risks of fatigue. 

Fatigue risks 

Typical risk factors for fatigue include long working hours, lack of rest breaks, work outside traditional daytime hours, and the demands of the job. 

Jobs can be overly demanding in different ways, for example, work overload – too much to do in too little time – or work underload – tasks that are excessively monotonous or repetitious. Work requiring prolonged physical or mental effort can also increase the risk of fatigue, as can environmental conditions such as working outdoors in hot conditions. 

It is particularly important to identify fatigue risks in jobs that are safety-critical, for example, driving, working at heights, working with flammable or explosive substances, undertaking tasks requiring great care and attention such as surgical procedures, and other jobs where mistakes can have disastrous consequences, such as electrical work. 

Controlling fatigue risks 

The types of measures used to control the risks depend on the particular factors likely to give rise to fatigue. For example, make sure people take adequate rest breaks, and avoid arrangements that give people incentives to work overly long hours.  

Managing fatigue often comes down to scheduling and roster design to ensure people have time to recover between shifts. 

Investment in fatigue management is likely to pay off for the business as well as its staff.