ABSTRACT
Atypical work schedules stand out among the various working conditions because they have a strong impact on so many aspects of a worker’s daily life, affecting not only the individual and his or her entire lifestyle, but most family members as well. The term ‘atypical work schedule’ encompasses a wide variety of ways of organising work time. As Akerstedt, Knutsson, Alfredsson and Theorell (1984) stressed, the term is a vague one, but usually refers to a form of work organisation where a relay system among employees is used to extend the production period beyond the normal daytime third of the 24-hour day. This definition includes fixed shift hours (for example, permanent nights or mornings), alternating shiftwork where a worker alternates on a regular or irregular basis between the different thirds of the 24-hour cycle (continuous or semi-continuous shiftwork), and flexible work schedules where workers are on call during off hours (emergency and repair services, self-employed individuals, etc.). Grouping these diverse forms under the same heading does not facilitate statistical analysis, and prompts us to be extremely cautious in making comparisons across nations, and even comparisons of different production areas within the same country. Because so much more data is available on shiftwork in the strict sense of the term, this chapter will deal more specifically with this kind of work organisation, and its varied effects.
