How to Staff for the Workload

Staffing for a given workload is very complicated. Yet covering the workload is the whole point of work. You want people there when they are needed. So how do you do it?
If the workload is flat, that is it doesn’t change from hour to hour, then you can have flat staffing. So you work out how many people you need and ensure that you always have that number. If the workload doesn't require a whole number of people then you either;

• need to find other work for them to do in the downtime,
• or understaff,
• or understaff part of the time,
• or overstaff and just have people there even when you don't need them.

If the workload changes, you have to decide how to change the staffing levels along with that fluctuation. Do you want that change to happen

• ahead of the increase and decline after the work starts to reduce,
• or after the increase and before the decline.

The image above shows a variable workload (yellow). You can either staff under the workload (pale green) and go short or you can overstaff (turquoise) and have people sat around but always know your workload is covered.
It depends what sort of operation you are managing, e.g. complaints line. If you miss a call, it is not going to be the end of the world. So you would staff to the pale green line. However if you were the 999 service, then you need to have someone there to answer the phone. Each missed call is a matter of life or death, so you over staff (turquoise) because the cost of having someone sat around for five minutes twiddling their thumbs is a lot lower than missing a call.
Once you have decided, you need to set up the shifts to match your staffing levels. Saving just one man hour per day is the equivalent of 1/5 of a person. To find out more about staffing to the workload visit our website

How much shift allowance should I pay?

The reason you pay a shift allowance is because you want to keep your workers. If you don't pay them for working unsociable hours , then they will leave, to work for somebody else.


So one option is to see how much your competitors are paying for working similar hours.


Another is by negotiation, you negotiate with the unions to see how much they expect for working these hours. This means that each time you change the shift pattern, you potentially have to renegotiate the shift allowance again.


An alternative option is to calculate the shift allowance. You negotiate what the additional pay should be for each hour of the day and for each day of the week. You then multiply this table by the shifts worked on the shift pattern. This way you only have to negotiate the shift allowance once. Then just reapply the calculation each time you need to change the shift pattern. However you may wish to employ the shift allowance as an incentive for moving on to a new pattern. This approach dictates the shift allowance regardless of the shift pattern. However you can still use one off bonuses for moving shift patterns.


Typical shift allowances start from 5% for a two shift system and can go up to 65% for a fully flexible 24/7 shift operation with holidays included and lots of Banked hours to cover for all absences and short notice changes to their hours. Typically most companies use 25%-35% for a 24/7 operation.


If you are changing shift patterns then we can help you calculate the most appropriate shift allowance for your shift pattern and operational needs. Please contact us via email or phone us on +44 1636 816466