Fatigue at work: Why it's every employer's business

Errors, oversights and misjudgements caused by fatigue can spell trouble for both safety and productivity. 

Whether it’s a hospital doctor who’s worked a 24-hour shift, a driver who’s been too long behind the wheel, or an operator of heavy machinery at the end of an 80-hour week, the situation can too easily slip into the proverbial ‘accident waiting to happen’. Whatever your business, to keep your operation running smoothly, this is not something you need. 

Many industries now operate around the clock. For example, health and community services, law enforcement, transport, communications, manufacturing, and, increasingly, the retail and entertainment industries. Ever-increasing engagement in online transactions, technological developments, and community demand provide powerful incentives for working non-traditional hours.  

Organisations with international communications through online services now require employees to work non-standard hours to coordinate with people in other time zones. 

Shiftwork, night work, and extended shifts allow employers to maximise production and ensure that essential services are provided to the community 24/7, but there is increasing recognition that this can involve deficits to productivity and risks to health and safety, especially in combination with non-work-related factors. 

Adverse effects on safety 

It’s well-known that fatigue reduces a person’s ability to do whatever job they’re doing safely and effectively. More than mere drowsiness, fatigue can amount to a degree of physical and mental exhaustion that is severely debilitating, and likely to result in a higher level of accidents and injuries, especially if someone is operating a vehicle or machinery, or undertaking critical tasks that demand a high level of concentration. 

For example, you wouldn’t want to be in a plane subject to the vagaries of a pilot or air-traffic controller who was half asleep. 

It’s a particular problem for people undertaking work at a time they’d normally be sleeping. 

Adverse effects on health  

You might think fatigue is simply par for the course, an inconvenience you can get over on the weekend. But in reality, it can raise your risk of longer-term health effects including heart disease, diabetes, lower fertility, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, and gastrointestinal disorders. 

You’re better off without any of these ill-effects on their own and remember they can compound each other, too. For example, high blood pressure can raise the risk of a heart attack or stroke, which in turn is likely to lead to anxiety. 

Adverse effects on productivity 

Clearly, someone who is not ‘firing on all cylinders’ is not likely to be in top form when it comes to the efficiency and productivity with which they do their work. The downside for productivity is mediated through difficulties concentrating, impaired decision-making, and a reduced capacity to engage effectively in communication with others. 

Fatigue as a WHS and Psychosocial Risk

Under Australian WHS laws, employers (and other persons conducting a business or undertaking) must eliminate or minimise risks to health and safety so far as is reasonably practicable.

Fatigue is clearly recognised as a psychosocial hazard. This means employers are required to:

• identify work‑related factors that may cause or contribute to fatigue

• assess the risks arising from those factors

• implement effective control measures

• review and improve controls where necessary

• consult with workers throughout the process.

Fatigue should be managed using the same systematic risk‑management approach applied to physical hazards.

Fatigue risks 

Typical risk factors for fatigue include 

• long working hours

•  lack of rest breaks 

• work outside traditional daytime hours, and 

• the demands of the job. 

Jobs can be overly demanding in different ways, for example, work overload – too much to do in too little time – or work underload – tasks that are excessively monotonous or repetitive. Work requiring prolonged physical or mental effort can also increase the risk of fatigue, as can environmental conditions such as working outdoors in hot conditions. 

It is particularly important to identify fatigue risks in jobs that are safety-critical, for example, driving, working at heights, working with flammable or explosive substances, undertaking tasks requiring great care and attention such as surgical procedures, and other jobs where mistakes can have disastrous consequences, such as electrical work. 

Controlling fatigue risks 

Effective fatigue management focuses on prevention, not just individual endurance.

Control measures may include:

• designing rosters and schedules that allow adequate recovery between shifts

• limiting excessive overtime and discouraging incentives that encourage unsafe hours

• ensuring adequate staffing levels to manage workload

• providing regular and meaningful rest breaks

• rotating demanding tasks where possible

• addressing environmental factors such as heat and noise

• training managers to recognise early signs of fatigue and escalate concerns

• encouraging reporting of fatigue without fear of reprisal.

Controls should be proportionate to the level of risk and reviewed regularly to ensure they remain effective.

Key takeaway 

Fatigue is not an individual failing. It is a foreseeable workplace risk.

Employers are expected to treat fatigue as a psychosocial hazard and manage it through structured, evidence‑based risk‑management processes. Doing so protects worker health and safety, supports productivity and reduces the likelihood of incidents, claims and regulatory action.

Investment in fatigue management is not just good practice. It is integral to a safe, sustainable and legally compliant workplace.