Can an employee work in night shift for consecutively 06 months?

Can an employee work in the night shift for consecutively 06 months? Please advise.

Thanks & Regards,
Hemanth

Hi,

You want to know whether it is legally right to engage an employee in a night shift for continuous 6 months.

Let's keep aside the legality part.

If an employee continuously works the night shift, there is a higher risk of the employee developing metabolic syndrome, which might lead to cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, and neurological complications.

So, considering the employee's health (which is the primary wealth for the employee), it is suggested to rotate the night shift at frequent intervals.

Note: To the best of my knowledge, there is no restriction for keeping an employee on a continuous night shift, but please don't follow it wherever possible.

Where it is a three-shift working, the ideal way is to change the shift timing every week in a cyclical manner (i.e., A shift employees go to B shift, B goes to C, and C goes to A shift, and the cycle gets repeated). This helps in regulating the continuity and does not cause any metabolic or physical/mental strain on the employee. However, there are several cases where an employee expresses a preference for being retained in a particular shift like the night shift for a long duration of time. There is no illegality in this arrangement. There is a caution; continuing in an odd-hour shift for a long duration is known to have resulted in behavior distortions and other psychic issues.

Please check your standing orders.

In the model standing orders, there are provisions for a change of shifts. If there are such provisions, then keeping him for 6 months on a disadvantaged shift is illegal.