Work-life balance of shift workers

Excerpts from article:

Reasons for working shifts

The reasons for working a certain shift can vary. The General Social Survey did not ask the question, but the American Current Population Survey did. The most common reason, cited by 55% of full-time shift workers, was the nature of the job. However, for some, shift work was preferred because of family or child care (8%), school (3%), better pay (7%), or personal preference (11%). For another 8%, it was the only type of job they could get (McMenamin 2007).

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Previous research has found trade-offs between nonstandard schedules and time spent with a spouse and children. For example, working at night is associated with spending more time with children-suggesting that night schedules are a way for parents to juggle child care (Golla and Vernon 2006). In 2005, night shift workers spent 4.4 hours per day with their children-about 30 minutes per day more than day workers-and they spent 3.3 hours with their spouse-just over 1 hour less than day workers (Table 6). While working in the evening has been associated with less time spent with spouses and children (Golla and Vernon 2006), the GSS found only partial support for this. For example, evening shift workers spent an average of 4.2 hours per day with their children-about 18 minutes more than day workers-but they spent less time with their spouse than day workers (about 1 hour less).