Law enforcement agencies traditionally schedule their officers on a 40-hour shift throughout the week in which personnel work five 8 hour shifts with two days off. However, some agencies provide 10 hour shift days which means employees have the right to a three day weekend. This paper is going to list the pros and cons of working a 10 hour shift as a police officer.
​One of the enjoyable aspects that can come from working 4 10-hour shifts for officers is that, they are able to relax and rest with a three day weekend. Another positive outcome is that officers can gain more sleep which turns into more productivity for a day’s use. Alertness and focus will become easier to establish with the extra sleep that officers can gain from a 10-hour shift week. If overtime is granted, officers have the ability to work an extra 10-hour shift day and still have two days to spare.
​ Most occupations don’t allow the luxury of working 4 10-hour shifts because they simply don’t appreciate the fatigue that certain employees can experience and the time that could be potentially taken away from them. Another downfall aspect that comes from working a 10-hour shift is that some officers can experience high levels of stress and tiredness which can lead into an increase of accidents on the job. In comparison with 8-hour shifts, employees who undergo 10-hour shifts may also lose sleep time or even mess up their own sleep schedule which can turn into potentially missing work. In addition, 2 days off will go by quicker than a 3 day weekend.
​Working a 10-hour shift will benefit officers who can tolerate it. It is more likely that the younger generation will pick up on longer hours to gain more time off on the weekends because they have the stamina for it. Although 10-hour shifts aren’t a regular schedule at most occupations, it certainly plays it part when it comes to beneficial purposes. It just depends on whether the employee can handle the extra duty or not.

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