Nightworkers/Working Time Regulations

Health/Health and Capacities Assessment for Night workers

The Working Time Regulations 1998 provide night workers with the right to be offered a free and confidential health assessments at pre employment and then on a regular basis (annually suggested)

A night worker is someone who regularly works at least three hours at night, considered to be between 11pm and 6am.

Shea OH can provide your employees with this screening by offering a Night Worker paper questionnaire.

Completion of the Night Worker health assessment is voluntary. The employer has to offer this to Night Workers, but it is not mandatory that they take up the offer. However it does enable the employee to report any health concern or medical condition that is difficult to manage or may become worse by working night time hours.

A certificate of fitness with any recommendations based on the assessment will then be provided to the company and the employee. If a problem is identified we will recommend referral to an Occupational Health Physician.

The Night Worker medical assessment is to ensure that employees are not made ill as a consequence of working the night shift, and to ensure that they do not have an existing medical condition that may not be compatible with night work.

The medical conditions that are taken into consideration with respect to their effect on an employee's suitability for night work include:

• Endocrine problems
• Epilepsy
• Heart disease
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Mental illness
• Sleep problems.