4)

THE FIVE-DAY WEEK

the accepted working schedule and intends to revert to the
longer schedule as soon as conditions justify such a step, these
work arrangements are “de facto” rather than “de jure”
instances of the five-day week.

Tue Five-Nicur Week
Although not so widely known as the regular five-day week,
the short week schedule applied to night work is older and
relatively more general. The reason for its early adoption
and its prevalence in establishments that make a practice of
operating night shifts is obvious. Since night shifts cover the
late part of one day and the early part of the next, work
during only five nights each week will obviate encroachment
upon Sunday. Furthermore, night work is frequently instituted
 to meet demands for which ordinary overtime work is
inadequate, but which can be satisfied by working five nights
in the week.
In another study recently conducted by the Conference
Board,! it was found that nearly half of the establishments
that reported night operation confined these operations to
five nights in the week, as shown in Table 10. If from the
plants which operated six and seven nights per week those
are subtracted whose service or processes demanded continuous
 operation—namely, chemical, paper and pulp and
gas and electricity plants—the five-night group would constitute
 659, of the total.
When night work is conducted on the basis of regular
rotating shifts, the working hours at night are equal in length
to those of the day shifts, but where a fixed night shift is
operated, either permanently or as a temporary expedient,
there is a tendency toward longer working hours at night than
during the day. Table 10 shows a considerably greater tendency
 toward long hours in night shifts of plants on a fivenight
 schedule than in those working six or seven nights.
Some employers expressed the opinion that the efficiency of
night crews was impaired when such long shifts were worked,
but the majority felt that any undue strain or fatigue that
may have resulted was counteracted by the additional leisure
provided by the long week-end.
National Industrial Conference Board, “Night Work in Industry.” 1927.