Definition: Schedule and hours refers to the total volume of working time, the pattern in which it is arranged, and the degree to which workers can predict and control their schedule. Long working hours, unpredictable scheduling, shift work, and insufficient recovery time are all psychosocial hazards. The impact operates through fatigue, disruption of sleep and social life, reduced recovery between work periods, and impaired cognitive performance.
Overview
Working hours and schedule arrangements affect psychological and physical health through multiple pathways. Long hours directly increase fatigue and reduce recovery time. Shift work, particularly night shifts and rotating schedules, disrupts circadian rhythms with effects on mood, cognitive function, and immune function that persist beyond the shift itself.
Unpredictable scheduling is a growing concern. Workers who cannot plan their time reliably face difficulty maintaining childcare, social relationships, and personal health routines. This uncertainty itself is a stressor independent of the number of hours worked.
On-call arrangements create a particular psychosocial dynamic. Even when workers are not actively working, the knowledge that they may be called creates a state of partial vigilance that impairs recovery. Research suggests that on-call time at home has approximately one-third the restorative value of genuine off time.
Organisations often focus on contracted hours while being less attentive to expected availability. When cultural norms require workers to be responsive outside hours, the effective working day extends beyond the formal schedule in ways that are psychologically costly but difficult to measure.
Fatigue management is a closely related domain and is required under WHS frameworks for high-risk industries.
Why it matters
Long working hours and inadequate rest are associated with elevated rates of anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease, and physical injury. Safe Work Australia's fatigue guidance identifies the interaction between hours, shift patterns, and recovery time as a safety-critical issue. The Commonwealth Code of Practice (Comcare, 2024) explicitly names fatigue as a psychosocial hazard. The Model Code lists schedule and hours among the factors requiring assessment. WorkSafe NZ's guidance includes long or unpredictable hours as a work design hazard.
Warning signs
Signs this is managed well
- Workers can genuinely disconnect from work during their off time
- Shift patterns allow adequate recovery between blocks of work
- Scheduling is predictable with sufficient notice for workers to plan
- Long-hours culture is actively challenged at a leadership level
- Workers in high-demand periods receive support that is proportionate to the ask
Signs this is a risk
- Cultural norms require responsiveness outside working hours without formal acknowledgment
- Workers regularly work beyond contracted hours as a de facto expectation
- Shift patterns do not allow adequate recovery between rotations
- On-call arrangements are extensive and occur at high frequency
- Workers in certain roles cannot take leave when needed due to staffing constraints
Control measures
- 1Audit actual working hours against contracted hours across teams and roles
- 2Establish and communicate clear expectations about after-hours contact
- 3Design shift patterns that allow minimum adequate rest between rotations
- 4Review on-call frequency and provide additional compensation or recovery time
- 5Challenge long-hours culture through leadership behaviour and visible boundary-setting
- 6Incorporate fatigue risk into scheduling decisions for safety-critical roles
Legal context (Australia and New Zealand)
The Commonwealth Code of Practice (Comcare, 2024) explicitly names fatigue as a psychosocial hazard. The Model Code of Practice lists schedule and hours among the psychosocial hazard factors requiring assessment. Victoria's OHS (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025 and Compliance Code include hours of work and shift patterns as assessment factors. WorkSafe NZ's guidance includes long or unpredictable hours as a work design hazard. WHS fatigue management requirements overlap with this domain, particularly in safety-critical industries.
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Regulatory timeline
How this factor has been formalised in Australian and New Zealand workplace health and safety frameworks.
Regulatory timeline
- 2022
Schedule and hours named as a psychosocial hazard category in the Model Code of Practice.
- 2024
Commonwealth Code of Practice (Comcare) explicitly names fatigue as a psychosocial hazard, extending the scope to include its causes in scheduling and hours arrangements.
- 2025
Victoria's OHS (Psychological Health) Regulations 2025 and Compliance Code include hours and shift patterns as required assessment areas.
Related factors
- Work Demands →The volume, pace, and complexity of what is asked of workers.
- Autonomy →The degree of control workers have over how they do their work.
- Support →Whether workers receive adequate support from their manager and colleagues.