1
NIGHT WORK OPERATION
REecruiTiNG oF LaBor For NicutT Work
ENERALLY, the recruiting of labor for night work is
G more difficult than for day work, although in many
cases similar problems arise. The night-work period
itself or the longer number of hours are unattractive to many
employees. As in the case of day work the problem is affected
by the type of work, by the wages offered, by local conditions,
by social and home-life factors, by the presence or lack of
adequate transportation facilities and by the proximity of the
employee’s residence to the plant. As a general rule, young
and skilled workers are not attracted to night work even
with the offer of extra financial incentives. The comment
generally received is that the competent skilled worker can
always find day work and therefore does not seek night work.
Even the supply of untrained, unskilled and middle-aged
applicants for night work is not always plentiful.
The recruiting of labor for night work is in some instances
affected by the season of the year. The supply of night
workers is particularly scarce in the warm summer months,
because of the difficulty of procuring adequate sleep and rest
in hot weather, as well as because of the inclination of shift-
less employees to lead an idle life during this period. For
the “floater,” the wage and warmth offered in the factory by
the possibility of night work cease to be attractive with the
accumulation of money and the arrival of warm weather.
Even the better class of employees in many cases do not take
a job with the intention of remaining permanently on the
night force but, as a rule, only until a satisfactory day job
can be found.
The supply of labor for night forces, in general, consists of
less skilled men than are available for day work. It should be
borne in mind also that in many instances when night work
is in effect in plants, it is the response to greater production
16