Resource Analysts Ltd

Discontinuous shift systems: shift patterns, rosters, rotas

Lists of example shift patterns

Discontinuous systems are those which do not cover 24 hours a day but could be up to 7 days a week. There are an enormous number of options for discontinuous shift patterns. Some of the factors to take account of are:

• Number of teams or individuals
• Days of the week covered
• Operating hours during the day
• Contracted hours per week
• Shifts and shift lengths
• Number of staff required per shift per day
• Absence cover

We sell lists of some of the more common  shift patterns (rosters, rotas). Please contact us for prices. They are available in the following formats:

• Microsoft Excel spreadsheet
• Microsoft Word document
• RotaBase - a database of shift patterns or rotas that can be opened by our two software products, RotaBase and RotaView

Standard systems

• There are a number of standard systems with well established shift patterns:
• Staggered days
• Day and twilight
• Two-shift overlapping
• Double-day shift
• Day and nights

Out-of-hours shift patterns

Out-of-hours operations usually cover  the full week except for the standard Monday to Friday day shifts. So, a shift pattern would typically include Monday to Friday night shifts and weekend day and night shifts.