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at a submarine watchfloor (the 'shore side' of submarine communications) we had a wild schedule: 5am to 5pm for two days, then 5pm to 5am for the next two days.

by mlacks 5y ago

at a submarine watchfloor (the 'shore side' of submarine communications) we had a wild schedule: 5am to 5pm for two days, then 5pm to 5am for the next two days. Four days off after that, but then the cycle continues. I can't count the number of times I woke up several hundred yards from where I last was conscious - freeways, intersections, etc. Most of my coworkers had this issue as well. we finally convinced the command to go to a more normal policy, but this took decades.

jessriedel 5y ago
Even judged purely based on getting the best work-results out of your subordinates during their working hours, this sounds crazy. What was the stated justification?
- grayfaced 5y ago
  Most military watchfloors end up on stupid schedules like this. They aren't looking for work-results, they're looking to maximize accountability and minimize drama. The teams are fixed so they can align to command structure, so it will basically always be 4 shifts evenly divided. Because there is no night or weekend incentives, they want to rotate the night/weekends across all 4 teams. I used to do panama shifts, swapping between days/nights every 2 weeks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shift_plan#Panama_Schedule https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shift_plan#Panama_Schedule
  - jessriedel 5y ago
    Thanks! Useful. Is there any reason they don't rotate, say, once every 3 months rather than once every 2 weeks?
- spaetzleesser 5y ago
  Sounds a little like the “tough it out” attitude doctors have with their 24 hour shifts during training . I don’t think this can be justified rationally.
- bombcar 5y ago
  Such a schedule makes a lot more sense when you’re on the submarine deep underwater, especially if you’re trying to train for combat situations (where you may not be able to do a shift change). Perhaps they were matching that?
crooked-v 5y ago
From what I understand, similar sleep schedule insanity is extremely common in the current Navy.

by mlacks 5y ago

jessriedel 5y ago

Even judged purely based on getting the best work-results out of your subordinates during their working hours, this sounds crazy. What was the stated justification?

grayfaced 5y ago
Most military watchfloors end up on stupid schedules like this. They aren't looking for work-results, they're looking to maximize accountability and minimize drama. The teams are fixed so they can align to command structure, so it will basically always be 4 shifts evenly divided. Because there is no night or weekend incentives, they want to rotate the night/weekends across all 4 teams. I used to do panama shifts, swapping between days/nights every 2 weeks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shift_plan#Panama_Schedule https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shift_plan#Panama_Schedule
- jessriedel 5y ago
  Thanks! Useful. Is there any reason they don't rotate, say, once every 3 months rather than once every 2 weeks?
spaetzleesser 5y ago
Sounds a little like the “tough it out” attitude doctors have with their 24 hour shifts during training . I don’t think this can be justified rationally.
bombcar 5y ago
Such a schedule makes a lot more sense when you’re on the submarine deep underwater, especially if you’re trying to train for combat situations (where you may not be able to do a shift change). Perhaps they were matching that?

crooked-v 5y ago

From what I understand, similar sleep schedule insanity is extremely common in the current Navy.