Modern workers are increasingly looking for flexible shift options. According to Owl Labs’ industry data, over 35% of industrial workers would leave their job in favor of another one that gives them better schedule control. If you operate a 24/7 business, this is a golden opportunity to break away from the shift inflexibility of old and embrace new, emerging concepts to attract and retain top talent.

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Why Business as Usual Doesn’t Cut It

The current workforce is undergoing changes. Employees don’t stick around at the same company for long. Consistent work schedules create a rigidity that they view as a blow to work-life balance. You might lose a quality worker to a competitor if they offer a schedule that, for instance, allows the employee to attend activities with their children. Schedule rigidity is quickly becoming an unattractive job quality.

Absenteeism and high turnover result from this shift in employee priorities. Those who prefer consistent working hours (those who stay long-term) must then soak up the productivity of the vacant seats. This feeds into further absenteeism and higher turnover when your core group of top employees gets stretched too thin – they burn out quickly and leave for more stability.

Technology also contributes to the undoing of “business as usual.” When your employees want to switch shifts, that old spreadsheet keeping tabs of their hours doesn’t cut it. It can’t account for changes that occur the day of, and when everyone’s swapping shifts or making changes, no single person can keep track of it all.

Modern Solutions for Your Operation

You don’t have to lose control of your team to make the switch from rigid to flexible schedules. In fact, with the right mixture of tracking and AI, you have more control than you would otherwise. Here are a few options to explore:

Fractional shifts

Shift inflexibility, like the standard 8-hour or 10-hour shifts, presents a barrier for two significant groups of job seekers this year: working parents, and semi or fully-retired people. Fractional shifts solve this by breaking down a full workday into bite-sized, four-hour chunks. These smaller shifts offer workers the flexibility they want to attend to their personal activities, while still retaining productivity across the organization.

Shift Swapping and Bidding Strategies

You don’t have to manually swap shifts in Excel anymore. Using AI or online tools like UKG Ready or ShiftFlow, your workers can post shifts they can’t make to a pool of vetted peers that can pick it up for them. These systems ensure that only somebody with the correct certifications and experience can pick up appropriate shifts (for example, someone without forklift certification can’t pick up a Forklift Operator shift).

Combining controlled shift swapping and bidding with fractional 4-hour shifts offers a transformed working environment more inline with a gig-style structure that workers find attractive.

Compressed Scheduling

In contrast to fractional shifts, compressed workweek models are quickly growing in popularity. According to Drive Research, over 33% of industrial businesses utilize compressed workweeks – they utilize either the 4/10 Model (four days, 10 hours per day) or 3/12 Model (3 days, 12 hours per day). This creates multiple consecutive days of more-intense work time, followed by more time off than the typical 8 to 5 job.

How Tempstar Assists With The Shift

When you change up your shift strategy, it will inevitably leave a few gaps in your staffing. It will also result in a few learning curve and growing pain headaches along the way. Fortunately, Tempstar is adept at handling large workforces with varying work hours, so we’ve got you covered.

If you end up with gaps in your staffing after making the switch, we can cover any shift with ready-to-work temporary employees who’ve been pre-screened and pre-qualified to handle any job.

You don’t have to handle complex payroll situations on your own, either. We’re compliance specialists, and we’ll jump through all the employee payroll hoops for you, especially the pesky shift differential math and same-day pay.

If you’re ready to start your organization’s path away from shift inflexibility and toward a gig-ified method, we can assist you in managing your workforce during the transition. Contact us today to speak to a representative about your hiring needs.