Half of those who work shifts in the past year went to work sick despite the pandemic

• 6 out of 10 have not had time to recover

Poor conditions, inflexible schedules, and dissatisfaction lead to significant challenges for those who work after day shifts. Many have felt compelled to go to work sick in the past year, and others have witnessed the elimination of leisure time and reduced chances of recovery. These are factors that affect health and well-being in general, which in the long run can have a negative impact on both the employee and the business. A new study by Quinyx that works with scheduling tools appears.

Nearly 80% of the global workforce works on schedule shifts. For example, the care staff who take care of us when we are sick, the courier who makes sure we receive our online orders on time, or the store staff who fill the shelves when we shop for food. A workforce vital to our economy that keeps society going despite the fact that we are in the midst of a global pandemic. A workforce that also can’t talk about telecommuting and homework during Covid-19.

For the second year in a row, Quinyx conducted a global survey, The State of the Non-Desktop Workforce, with more than 10,000 people. In Sweden, 1,208 people were asked about their work environment, challenges, needs and how they find a balance between work and leisure. People work in health, care, retail, manufacturing, hotels, restaurants, facilities management as well as warehousing and logistics. Below are the statistics for Sweden.

Employee health: Despite the spread of infection – nearly half of them worked sick

• Half (50%) of all shift workers went to work sick in the last year.
• 23% felt blamed by their boss/employer for not taking a shift.

During a global pandemic, it is worrying that nearly half of them have gone to work sick. A major challenge because it can put others at risk, lead to ill health and in the long run burnout among employees.

Imbalance between work and free time

• 63% missed social events or vacations due to their work schedules.
• 69% of those working in healthcare have had to take their leisure time at the last second as well as give up time for training and personal recovery.
• 32% of all shift workers want a more flexible schedule.

The figures show a clear picture of the challenges that shift workers face. Flexible schedules do not enable employees to achieve a healthy work-life balance. Something that may cause reduced commitment and poor wellbeing in the workplace. More than half of all shift workers reported that they could not plan their spare time. This means a lot of sacrificed workouts, healthy activities and personal recovery time after work.

Bad schedules create a lot of stress

• 37% feel pressured by colleagues to take shifts they don’t want.
• More than half of shift workers (52%) considered quitting because they were unhappy with their work environment. In healthcare, the number is even higher, 57%.
• Up to 75% are contacted by their employer in their spare time, directly via text or phone.
• More than half (53%) note a staff shortage due to unexpected demand or sick people. Something 86% is having a negative impact on the work environment and making it more stressful.
• 44% stated that staff shortages caused poor service to customers.
• 58% plan to stay in their job long term, but 1 in 5 are currently looking for a new job. 51% think there are plenty of other job opportunities.

It’s not just inflexible schedules that cause stress and anxiety. Last-minute schedule changes have a significant impact on employee well-being. Difficulty changing shifts is a common problem for many and 24% are concerned that their boss will react negatively if they are asked to change shifts for personal reasons.

About Quinyx:
Quinyx is a leader in AI-driven scheduling that makes it easy to optimize schedules, decide on time and budget, and anticipate staffing needs. Quinyx helps more than 850 companies around the world reduce employee costs and increase efficiency – while making employees more satisfied. Quinyx saves time and money for companies like McDonald’s, Sysco, Hilton, Elgiganten, Espresso House and Maersk. Quinyx has offices in Sweden, the United Kingdom, Finland, Germany, Norway, Denmark, the United States, Australia and the Netherlands. Its software has also been applied globally in markets such as China, Japan and Korea. Quinyx’s customer base is spread all over the world.

The following attachments are available for download:
Workforce from Quinyx Deskless 2021 (PDF)
Quinyx Press Release (PDF)

See the full press release and other news from this company at Cision News.
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