Irregular shift work, and to a lesser extent, night shift work, are linked to poor health, according to a new study by a Tufts researcher. That is esp

The Health Hazards of an Uncertain Job Schedule

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2021-06-22 06:00:08

Irregular shift work, and to a lesser extent, night shift work, are linked to poor health, according to a new study by a Tufts researcher. That is especially concerning because some 20% of workers now do irregular shift work, and more workers are likely to be drawn to gig economy jobs in the future with similar unpredictable work schedules.

The new study by Mary Davis, an economist and associate professor in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, looked at national survey data for about a 20-year period ending in 2014, focusing on the self-reported health outcomes of people working either night shifts or shifts that changed frequently and were not predictable.

Most previous studies treated shift work as one thing, not discerning between night work and irregular shift work. “These are very different things that might have different health outcomes,” Davis says.

She found that the irregular scheduling was causing more problems than the night shift work. “There was something about the uncertainty around knowing your schedule that had particularly negative health effects,” she says.