A few years ago a North American regional police authority asked us to find and implement a schedule that would improve service and reduce costs. The entire effort was backed by the chief of police, the officer’s association, and the police services board. At the time, police officers were essentially “flat-staffed” in large blocks throughout each day. The schedule did not account for workload variations by the time of day, the day of the week, or seasonal fluctuations. Nee

Every holiday season I see people villainize retailers, manufacturers, and many businesses for their holiday work practices. “They should let their employees enjoy time at home during the holidays!” That is generally the message people convey. I don’t have an opinion for or against the practice of working on holidays – there are already so many shift workers that are essential to the functioning of our society working on holidays that I see there are many ways to help employe

We often say at Coleman Consulting Group that a schedule is not about your day on and day off pattern or your shift length. Schedules are about understanding the impact of the entire system on process and people. #shiftschedule #shiftlength #businessneeds #employeedesires #DisruptHR #HR #Workforce #HRonPurpose #Business #turnover #schedules

This weekend we will "Fall Back" once again for Daylight Savings Time. Every year, we hear the arguments for and against, and the debate has even made it to the ballot this year in California. Where you live in the country, what time you go to work, and your personal habits and lifestyle can all affect your positive or negative view of DST. So what are the issues surrounding DST, and why should we be paying attention? The reasons typically given in support of DST are energy

Do you know if your company is in compliance with the provisions FLSA? In the last two years, 100 percent of the clients we have consulted are at risk of back pay – and they had no idea. In some cases up to millions of dollars. #HRonPurpose #HR #shiftlength #overtime #Business #scheduling #shiftwork #flsa #Humanresorces

That may sound like a strange question. Many people are conditioned to believe that overtime is never good for a business. The reality is that overtime can be extremely cost effective and even build morale under the following conditions: Overtime is used to meet a short-term increase in demand (a short-term need) Overtime levels or use does not become excessive Policies favor people that prefer to work overtime, while those that do not want overtime can avoid it When overtime

I love it when we make a real difference for both the employee and the company! This story starts out like so many others in manufacturing plants all over the world. Demand for the product being produced grows, so a facility that might traditionally run Monday through Friday starts doing work on Saturdays. Demand grows further and suddenly production is happening seven days a week. This was the situation at Keystone Foods’ processing facility in Eufaula, Alabama. Growth was g

This week I visited with managers from one of our multi-site customers. Spread across North America, this organization provides services from over twenty locations in three countries. Staffed to cover many non-standard hours, turnover had been a growing problem. Engagement surveys and exit interviews continue to point to employee schedules as one of the central themes causing dissatisfaction. Another issue has been upper management neglecting to listen to employees. Earlier

Now that the summer is nearly over, many parents are getting ready for school. For many people, this tends to be a high demand period where we "bend" our schedules to make sure we are there at the right times for drop off, pickup, and to support all the afterschool demands. Work schedules that allow people to meet those demands can make a big difference for many employees. A segment of the population that continues to grow is the dual income families with kids that manage th

Over my twenty years of designing and implementing shift schedules, I have stopped a number of companies from going to 7-day operations just as often as I have recommended 7x24 operations. My number one tip is, “Don't just put in 7-day schedules in every department.” Just because employees are working every weekend and no matter how many hours you schedule it doesn’t seem like the facility can keep, doesn’t mean it’s time to schedule a 24x7 operation. A food manufacturer str