Fatigue Management

Overview

Fatigue Management should be managed through a planned system of work: identify the task-specific hazards, eliminate exposure where practical, use engineered or collective controls before relying on PPE, verify critical safeguards before starting, and stop the task when controls are missing or conditions change. This guide applies those principles specifically to recognizing fatigue-related performance loss and controlling work-rest, travel and high-risk task exposure.

Main Hazards

• • Slower reaction, poor judgment and microsleep during safety-critical work
• • Long shifts, night work or commuting extending effective work time
• • Uncontrolled changes, unclear responsibilities or missing communication
• • People entering hazards without adequate planning or verification
• • Delayed response to changing conditions, incidents or warning signs

Essential Controls

1. 1Plan staffing and work-rest arrangements for shift length, time of day and task risk.
2. 2Allow workers to report fatigue and reassign or pause safety-critical tasks when alertness is inadequate.
3. 3Define responsibilities, critical controls and stop-work triggers before work begins.
4. 4Communicate the plan in a way workers can understand and verify understanding.
5. 5Use field verification, observations and supervision to confirm controls remain effective.
6. 6Learn from deviations, near misses and incidents and close corrective actions.

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