It refers to work schedules that vary from one shift to another on a certain basis. Rotating shifts can be of different lengths, and the schedule can take breaks for night shifts and weekend shifts or run continuously. 

Businesses that run a 24-hours day use rotating shifts to have staff at every hour. Some specific shifts might include day shifts, night shifts, swing shifts, and overnight shifts. Ultimately, it means that employees cover each shift of a business day.

Rotating shifts are done cyclically by having several set shifts and rotating who will work those shifts over the course of the week or month.

These shifts can be organized from morning to afternoon, then afternoon through night, and from the night, circling all around to the next morning. They are generally from eight-hour shifts to twelve-hour shifts during the whole day. It can vary depending on the kind of business you are carrying on, operation time, and what the employer wants.

A rotating schedule means that employees will work a particular shift over a set period of time. Those workers on a rotating schedule may work the same shift on different days or different shifts.

There are several fundamental elements to consider when making a rotating shift schedule for your business.

Shift Length

It is the period of how long each shift lasts. Some may want longer shifts in exchange for more days off and a better balance between social life and job.

12-hour shifts are a great alternative to the traditional 8-hour shift for this purpose. They can become an excellent option for many businesses that have 24-hour operations. Although, you have to keep in mind many other things while implementing a 12-hour shift, like your employee's health, morale, production levels, safety concerns, and overtime.

Schedule Format

The format is how each shift is combined into the schedule. The most common schedule used are fixed shifts and rotating shifts.

On a fixed shift, employees work at the same shift pattern every work day. It is widely used in industries with a set amount of work to finish daily.

A rotating shift work is when the schedule rotates through several different shift patterns. This schedule is commonly used in industries where the volume of work might change throughout the day. 

Call-In/Call-Out

Also referred to as "on-off pattern," it is the number of days an employee is scheduled to work. It is followed by the number of days the employee is off, closing this pattern as a cycle. 

There are three different types of on-off work patterns: 

• Weekends Off: It is when the employee works from Monday to Friday and has the weekend off.
• Consecutive Days Off: The employee will have days off during the week.
• Consecutive  Days Worked: The employee will have a day off after working a certain amount of days.

Overtime

It is when an employee works more hours than their regular amount during the day. This can be voluntary or mandatory.

On voluntary overtime, the employee decides to work more than was set previously. This happens in industries where workers receive a premium payment for working overtime.

When a full-time employee is required to stay at work more than their regular hours, we are talking about mandatory overtime. It usually happens in industries with a large work volume to handle, and more workers are needed during that time. 

Overtime can be a good way to meet certain workload quotas, minimizing the need for staffing changes while maximizing employee compensation. But, you should be careful as it can lead to higher rates of absenteeism, higher turn-overs, and lower productivity, things you want to avoid at all costs.

Scheduling Policies

They are the rules that mandate how employees are scheduled and how changes are made over the same schedule. These can include concepts like overtime limits, maximum consecutive hours, call-in procedures, and pay policies.

Proper documentation for your policies will help avoid unnecessary conflicts between managers, employees, and the company. These are created to help your business meet its productivity and safety needs while helping workers meet their scheduling, personal needs, and work-life balance.

Nearly every business can put the rotating schedule to use, whether it is just as simple as alternating weekends or switching shifts during the week. Either way, there are four different types of rotating shifts:

• Frequent: Weekly changes to the shift will mean that an employee goes from working the day shift to the night shift over the week. Its disadvantage is that it can be hard for people to adjust to both physical and planning proper work-life balance.
• Slow: Changes to the shifts will happen over several months. 
• Weekend: In this approach, employees take turns working weekends, giving everyone a chance for a weekend off.
• Partial: Some will always work a fixed shift, while others will work on a rotating schedule. This could happen due to the need for skilled coverage, employee qualification requirements, or necessary continuity for each shift.

There are many types of rotating shift schedules that might fit your business model.

This schedule uses three 8-hour shifts rotating in a 28-day cycle. Companies use four teams that will work each shift throughout the month following the next schedule:

• Seven day shifts
• Two days off
• Seven swing shifts
• Two days off
• Seven night shifts
• Three days off

The clear benefit of this format is that shifts will have less workload, with eight-hour shifts instead of ten or twelve. Although, there will be people that might need to adjust to working seven consecutive days.

It is a variant of the "4-3 schedule". It consists of five teams of employees working 10-hour shifts; each employee will work for six days and then get four days off.

You'll need to determine which rotating schedule fits your business best. The choice will depend entirely on your hours of operation, staff size, overtime requirements, and compliance. 

Once that is resolved, you should:

• Start scheduling workers to shifts and double-check with your team about potential conflicts. Be prepared to explain why you are looking to work with this schedule plan (especially if you ask staff to work on shifts they never took or were interested in before).
• Start assigning your staff to different rotation groups. Depending on how you manage your operations, it might be worthwhile to have separate shift groups or schedule types. Consider who you think will work together if you are familiar with your employees. And also consider the expertise of senior staff, as you might want them working in high productivity hours.
• Share the new schedule with your team and start making any necessary adjustments. A good way to easily share it is using a template on Excel, which we'll provide later in this article.

Using a rotating shift schedule allows for an even distribution and fosters team spirit. Many managers and employees appreciate the benefits it offers. Let's check some of those.

Flexibility

Workers will experience a bit more flexibility to study, take care of their families, or just run errands that otherwise would be difficult to do during normal working hours. 

Employees will like the flexibility of a rotating shift schedule as long as they receive their schedule with advance notice.

Better Workload

Implementing a rotating shift schedule will help distribute the heavier workload of high productivity hours and the burden of disrupted sleep during the overnight shifts. 

All workers share the benefits of certain times and the disadvantages of others (for example, working over dinner rush in a restaurant, but you'll have to work late shifts).

Also, using a rotating shift can allow employees an occasional weekend off. So, everyone will take turns of both a "bad shift" and working at their preferred time. Including the senior staff makes the system feel inclusive and fair.

When the whole staff is exposed to each other and the entire environment in the workplace, it can make for heightened team spirit and a better knowledge of the company for everyone.

More Interaction Between Employees

As they work over different times of day, workers will have a wider experience performing various tasks.

Also, many training sessions and important meetings happen during the day. Making rotating shifts will help each employee have a chance to access those regularly. 

Working on a rotating schedule will help employees to keep the work fresh. They’ll be less likely to get stuck on what they are doing as their hours, shifts, and work experiences will continually change.

We have already looked at the many elements that compose a rotating shift schedule, the different types of rotating schedules, their benefits, and many other elements that comprise it. But you might wonder how you can transfer all this knowledge to a sheet and present it to work.

You can make a rotating shift schedule using spreadsheet software; one of the most accessible is Microsoft Excel. It’s easy to learn, and you can create these schedules using customizable templates.

And if you need a CD key for Excel, you can get one at a low price on RoyalCDKeys. It comes with the latest version of Office, and you will get the whole package. So, you won't only get Excel, but also other Office programs like Word, Outlook, Access, PowerPoint, and more.

Rotating shift schedules will give everyone a chance to work on preferred or less preferred shifts and days. It will provide better coverage while allowing workers to balance work hours with personal life. 

Think about all the scheduling challenges of your business. With all the different kinds of rotation scheduling to choose from, define which one is the best for your organization, and get started with one of the templates we provided. You can make your own sooner than later.