Quarterly December 2011 - Odfjell

Briefings
ODFJELL QUARTERLY magazine
Sustainable
social innovation
By Myrna van der Poel
22
On 1 January 2012 Odfjell Terminals
Rotterdam’s 24/7 five-shift system will
change. The changes will initially be on a
trial basis and will mean working in shorter
cycles with a forward rotation.
The initiative to investigate a possible new
shift system was taken by colleagues working
in the Operations Department. These are the
people that actually work in the ‘round the clock’
scheme. Working together with the employees
to find business improvements has been a
great example of social innovation. OTR’s
Management welcomed the idea and a Task
Force was formed shortly after.
Task Force
When discussing issues such as changing the
working hours or shift schedules, it was essential
that The Task Force also involved OTR’s Works
Council and got their approval. The Task Force,
is being led by the enthusiastic Arian Jiskoot,
Stock Administrator Shift D. He initiated and
developed the plan, communicated the ideas
with the other workers on different shifts, liaised
with the Works Council, examined various
alternatives and found solutions, etc. Arian has
almost completed a study in Social Innovation
so it was hardly surprisingly perhaps that he
was the one who came up with this project.
When their ideas became more defined, the
Task Force asked the Works Council for a written
survey. This survey was needed to give an
insight into the preferences of the 160 colleagues
(approximately) that work in the 24/7 system.
Democratic process
Peter van Kessel, the Chairman of OTR’s Works
Council, who has been heavily involved in the
Task Force process, explains: – We held two polls.
The first to determine the type of shift schedule.
Once the type schedule was defined, we held a
second poll to determine which of the two possible
varieties within this particular type would
be chosen. A very democratic process. We are
very happy to see that the voice of the majority
really matters. Such democratic processes also
create a lot of support amongst the people.
Better for biorhythms
The new system is about working in shorter
cycles with a forward rotation. Although working
in continuous shift systems can be tough,
medical research has proved that a system of
shorter cycles with a forward rotation is the
best for people’s biorhythms. Working the
longer shifts can be compared with a constant
feeling of ‘jet-lag’: your body gets used to one
particular shift pattern and then you are forced
to adjust to another schedule after a period of
time. When working shorter shifts, you won’t
have this effect: before your body gets used to
a particular shift, you have already changed the
pattern and started to work different hours. In
practice, one works 2 day shifts, then 2 evening
shifts, followed by 1 night shift. The next period
is 1 day, 2 evenings, 2 nights, and so on, versus
4-3-4 as per today’s situation. On paper, it
appears to show a true benefit for the health
of our colleagues.
Forward rotation:
day shift - evening shift - night shift
Backward rotation:
night shift - evening shift - day shift
Union support
Not only are the OTR employees happy with this
initiative, we also got positive feedback from
the Trade Unions. Albert van Damme of the
Christian National Union commented: – We very
much support the participation of employees
when it comes to decisions about their own
working environment and conditions. This is a
classic example of social innovation, beneficial
to all people involved.
Although the benefits of the new schedule
look convincing and sustainable, we are still in
discussions and talking initially about a ‘trial
change’. The trial will last for at least one year
and in accordance with the theory of the Plan-
Do-Check- Act-circle, we will evaluate the new
schedule in September 2012.
Although working in continuous shift systems can be
tough, medical research has proved that a system of
shorter cycles with a forward rotation is the best for
people’s biorhythms
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