Shift work (night)

[Captain Jack]

I have a job interview in London on Friday and was wondering what your thoughts were on this.

It's a shift based pattern job, working 7am-3pm, 3pm-11pm and 11pm-7am It's a typical IT support role, with a fairly interesting job description. It pays a lot more than my current role (10k more!) but the big BUT is the crappy hours. Seems like that's social life out of the window and who knows what it will do to my already not great health...

Thoughts?

[steve_earwig]

Depends how long the shifts go for. I did 2 years of nights and got on well with it but if the shifts only last for a week I can imagine you never getting enough sleep.

[mjb]

Well the shift times avoid traffic (either on the roads or people on the trains/tube)... I did a couple of years on rotating 12hr shifts and loved it, but I wouldn't go back there. The important question to ask is how long do you get between shift changeovers. On my shifts it equated to having a LOT of days off. We were also allowed to trade shifts so I'd work some of my 'off' days and end up being able to take breaks without using up holiday entitlement

[teamster1975]

How does your other half feel about it Alex? Bare in mind you may not get a lot of time together.

[jasper5]

I was told about vacancies for Traffic Patrol Officers with the Highways Agency a little while back, but declined due to the shift work, I reckoned my heart problems would cause me serious grief sooner or later due to the lack of rest etc.

My daughter and her hubby both work for the Highways Agency on shifts, they hardly see each other.

Having said all that, the extra money might be worth it.

[Captain Jack]

The important question to ask is how long do you get between shift changeovers. On my shifts it equated to having a LOT of days off.

Er.. as far as I understand so far, it's just the weekends off but I'll have to find out for certain at the interview tomorrow.

How does your other half feel about it Alex? Bare in mind you may not get a lot of time together.

Yeah, we spoke about it. She's not overly keen on this as she has done shift work before in NHS and didn't like it. Everyone else tells me not to do it 'cos I'd always be tired, cranky and annoyed (no change there, then).

My daughter and her hubby both work for the Highways Agency on shifts, they hardly see each other.

Can you ask them to hurry up with the road works on M25 between J16 and J18... It's a pain in the butt

Having said all that, the extra money might be worth it.

That's the big plus... and I don't feel all that secure in my current role (redundancies galore).

[puggy]

The last 2yrs i worked in a coal mine were a 3 shift pattern , 6am - 2pm 2pm-10pm 10pm-6am
a week of each , i fooking hated it , days you could't go out late cos got to be up at 4, noons
no life whatsoever , nights yuk !!!

[Welly]

I always think that if an oportunity comes along, and redundances are afoot, (and it is very hard to tell if you will or will not be one of them, no-one tells you anything) then if you turn it down and later get made redundant you will shoot yourself for not giving it a go.

Nights and more money, or days with no job

Not being harsh, just my slant on things.

I would guess that nights could be a right good crack given the right mix of collegues

What d'ya reckon Cap'n?

You could always live on a cocktail of RedBull drinks and/or Nightol

[steve_earwig]

But if it doesn't suit him then he could end up with no job anyway

[Captain Jack]

Interview today....

[teamster1975]

Best of luck Alex!

[Welly]

Go get'em Cap'n

[Captain Jack]

What a posh place. Doubt it will mean anyone anything but it's a company called GAM... some investment company. HUGE... the offices are located in a no10 style terraced housing - very very posh.

Still not sure about the crappy night shifts. It's a weekly rotation, starting Sun night 11pm-7am Monday.. finish Friday morning at 7am and then a longish weekend till Monday 3pm for late shifts.. then earlys. And so it goes on...

[steve_earwig]

Oops, didn't see it was today Sounds very swish Howd'ya reckon you did?

[neildavies]

Many moons ago, I worked on the production line in the same place as Dairees (who was in the posh offices), and that was continental shifts, 12 hours, half days, half nights. I didn't mind the night shift, except weekends. That got me down, on a break time, looking across the valley to a puc, seeing people staggering out.

I think my wife (then girlfriend) didn't like it more than me, especially weekends.