IEH Ergonomics and Human Factors Tool

Fatigue and Shift Work Risk Screening Tool

Use this practical IEH screening tool to identify fatigue-related risks from shift work, long hours, night work, overtime, limited recovery time, commuting, workload and safety-critical tasks. The tool is intended to support early review of work schedules and human factors risks.

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What this tool screens

Shift length, consecutive shifts and night work
Rest time, breaks, overtime and commuting
Physical workload, mental workload and vigilance demand
Safety-critical tasks affected by fatigue
Fatigue reporting, supervision and management controls

Screening Approach

A practical first-level review for fatigue and shift work risk

The tool uses a simple concern-based scoring system. It identifies fatigue risk factors, calculates an indicative risk percentage, highlights priority flags and suggests practical actions for employers and WSH professionals.

1. Describe the shift arrangement

Enter the job role, shift type, working hours, consecutive shifts, rest period, commute time and whether work is safety-critical.

2. Screen fatigue risk factors

Assess shift design, rest and recovery, workload, vigilance, safety-critical tasks and fatigue management controls.

3. Review and print the result

Generate a fatigue risk rating, priority flags, section scores and practical recommendations for follow-up action.

Assessment Form

Complete the fatigue and shift work screening

Use this tool with worker feedback, supervisor input, shift rosters, overtime records and incident or near-miss data where possible.

Work and shift information

Provide basic information about the job, shift pattern or work group being screened.

Job role / work group

Department / work area

Number of workers affected

Shift type

Typical shift start time

Typical shift end time

Typical shift length

Consecutive shifts

Consecutive night shifts

Rest time between shifts

One-way commute time

Is the work safety-critical?

Brief task or shift description

High-risk activities involved

Select any activity where fatigue may increase injury, incident or error risk.

Driving or vehicle operation Machinery operation Control room or sustained monitoring Chemical handling Confined space work Work at height Emergency response Lifting or critical operations

Scoring guide:
Low concern = 0. Moderate concern = 1. High concern = 2. Not applicable = excluded from scoring. A higher percentage means more fatigue and shift work risk factors may be present.

IEH Fatigue and Shift Work Risk Screening Summary

Generated using the IEH Fatigue and Shift Work Risk Screening Tool.

Screening Result

Complete the tool to generate a result

0% 0 / 0

Not calculated

The tool will calculate an indicative fatigue and shift work risk level and generate practical recommendations.

Section score summary

Priority fatigue flags

Suggested actions

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References

Reference basis used for this screening tool

This tool is informed by recognised fatigue, shift work and human factors guidance. It is a preliminary screening tool and should not be treated as a formal fatigue risk assessment or medical assessment.

HSE Fatigue

HSE guidance explains fatigue as a human factors issue that can reduce mental and physical performance and increase accident risk.

View HSE fatigue guidance

HSE HSG256: Managing Shift Work

HSG256 provides health and safety guidance for managing shift work risks and understanding the impact of shift work.

View HSE HSG256 guidance

OSHA Worker Fatigue

OSHA guidance covers long work hours, extended or irregular shifts, worker fatigue, hazards and prevention measures.

View OSHA worker fatigue guidance

OSHA Fatigue Prevention

OSHA provides prevention guidance including education, fatigue symptoms, sleep, diet, exercise and work environment measures.

View OSHA fatigue prevention guidance

NIOSH Fatigue and Work

NIOSH provides resources on fatigue, shift work, long work hours and strategies to reduce fatigue-related risks.

View NIOSH fatigue and work resources

NIOSH Center for Work and Fatigue Research

NIOSH’s centre focuses on health and safety risks related to nonstandard work schedules and worker fatigue.

View NIOSH fatigue research centre

Disclaimer: This tool is intended as a preliminary fatigue and shift work screening guide only. It does not replace a formal fatigue risk assessment, medical assessment, occupational health review, legal compliance review or professional human factors assessment. For high-risk, safety-critical or complex shift work arrangements, organisations should seek professional support from a competent safety, occupational health, ergonomics or human factors practitioner.

Need support managing fatigue and human factors risks?

IEH can support organisations with fatigue risk screening, shift work review, workload assessment, safety-critical task review, worker interviews and practical recommendations to reduce fatigue-related error and improve safe work performance.

Contact IEH