Work-related fatigue

Fatigue is a state of mental and/or physical exhaustion that reduces a person’s ability to perform work safely and effectively.  It can occur because of prolonged or intense mental or physical activity, sleep loss and/or disruption of the internal body clock.

Signs of fatigue include:  tiredness even after sleep, slow reflexes, reduced hand-eye coordination, short term memory problems, inability to concentrate, blurred vision or impaired visual perception, a need for extended sleep during days off work. 

Fatigue may increase the risk of accidents/incidents because of a lack of alertness or may affect the ability to make good decisions particularly  when:

• operating machinery/driving;
• undertaking tasks that require a high level of concentration;
• when undertaking night or shift work

 Fatigue can be caused by work related or non-work related factors or a combination of both.

Risk of fatigue	control measure
Working excessive hours Working irregular or unpredictable hours Extended overtime Inadequate rest times between work shifts Inadequate number of breaks during work	Ensure that hours of work and meal breaks/rest pauses are implemented as per the relevant Enterprise Agreement Ensure that working hours and rosters provide for adequate rest periods in between (to ensure adequate sleep) Ensure that work hours of all staff are monitored and where excessive hours are worked then this is identified and investigated to try to prevent a recurrence; consider staff covering for staff absence/annual leave or where there are vacancies or where extra hours are required due to an increase in workload Plan work, as far as possible, to prevent large increases of workload at specific times of the year; if this cannot be avoided consider obtaining additional staff for these busy periods Ensure some contingency planning is undertaken so as to ensure that when staff are absent there is sufficient resource to undertake the work without putting undue working hours on other staff or consider whether there are any tasks that can be suspended until staff levels are back to full complement Ensure shift and night workers are allocated consecutive days off to allow for at least two full nights rest including some weekends Ensure staff are aware of the Employee Assistance Program and guidance available around sleep hygiene strategies Encourage staff to participate in UTS Wellbeing Events and to seek advice from the Health and Wellbeing Partners
Job repetition Physical demands Mental demands (e.g. high concentration over an extended period of time)	Ensure plant, machinery and equipment is fit for purpose Redesign jobs to limit periods of excessive mental or physical demands Introduce job rotation to limit build-up of mental and physical demands and to increase mental stimulation Encourage staff to participate in UTS Wellbeing Events and to seek advice from the Health and Wellbeing Partners
Exposure to hazardous substances and atmospheric contaminants Exposure to noise Exposure to extreme temperatures Exposure to vibration	Avoid working during periods of extreme temperature Provide adequate heating or cooling systems where required If working in extreme temperatures cannot be avoided then ensure that regular breaks away from the area are taken so that staff can warm up/cool down Install/provide fit for purpose machinery (low noise and vibration) Ensure systems are in place to protect the work atmosphere from contaminants e.g. fumes, dust etc Ensure that staff wear appropriate clothing for the environment and personal protective equipment, where required
Young workers not being fully developed physically Young workers leading hectic lives including irregular working/studying hours, socialising etc	Ensure that young workers are trained in manual handling activities, where relevant Ensure that physical tasks allocated to young workers are rotated regularly and that adequate supervision is in place Ensure that young workers know that they are expected to schedule adequate sleep before arriving for work and that they are adequately supervised to ensure that any unsafe behaviours are identified Avoid routinely asking young workers to work extra (unscheduled) hours or enforcing overtime Ensure that young workers take adequate breaks Ensure young workers are aware of the Employee Assistance Program and guidance available around sleep hygiene strategies