Labor Shift Index

a quality index that expresses on a relative basis the number of times on an average day an operator’s position is actually being used.

This index is calculated as the ratio of the number of man-days worked by all shifts to the number in the largest shift. For example, during a month 8,000 man-days were worked in the first shift, 5,000 in the second, and 3,000 in the third. The labor shift index would be 16,000 (8,000 + 5,000 + 3,000) divided by 8,000, that is, 2.0. In calculating the labor shift index, the number of workers using the equipment and the auxiliary workers are taken into account. Unlike the equipment shift index, which counts all the equipment, both operating and installed, the labor shift index reflects only the operator’s positions actually occupied. Therefore, it is also necessary to calculate the continuity coefficient, which is the ratio of the number of workers in the largest shift to the number of available operators’ positions.