[Work by shifts in Botucatu, São Paulo: a descriptive study]

In view of the lack of information on shift-work schedules and working organization in companies located in Botucatu, São Paulo State, we obtained initial information on areas of economic activity, number of workers, and work schedules from companis by using facsimiles and mailgrams afler receiving a list of companies from the directory of the CIESP. To those who confirmed the use of work in shifts, a questionnaire with instructions was sent in order to characterize how work was organized. There were 42 manufacturing industries among 66 companies responding to the study. Fourteen companies reported occurrence of work in shifts, including 6,541 workers out of 9,502 in the 66 companies. There were 2,346 workers with shift schedules on production divisions in the companies reporting the existence of shift systems. Eight companies had been using rotating shift systems, of which 5 reported rotation schemes with 6 or more consecutive night shifts. Two companies notified shift schedules with counter-clockwise direction of rotation including 684 workers in production divisions. There were systems with single and multiple shifts lasting from 5 to 8 hours and many work schedules even with the same length and same number of shifts. This information will allow us to evaluate the relationship between shift work, health, and the social life of shift workers.