What kind of shifts do firefighters work?
Firefighters across the U.S. work many different schedules. Some fire department safety employees work 8, 12 or 24-hour shifts. The Newport Beach Fire Department works a 48-hour shift cycle. That means we work two 24-hour shifts back-to-back. For example, “A” Shift comes to work at 7:30 AM on Monday and relinquishes duty at 7:30 AM on Wednesday to the next crew. Having three shifts, A, B and C, each day of the month is covered, each shift having worked 10 shifts per month (this equates to a 56-hour work week) The 24 hours shift model is used for several reasons. The most important is because it is more cost effective. The Fire Department is staffed 24 hours/ day, 365 days/year. The 24 hour shift (more specifically the 56 hour work week) allows the City, under Federal Law, to pay firefighters straight time for the full 56 hours, rather than the standard 40 hours that is required under the traditional 40 hour/week work schedule. If the City were to move to a standard 40/week schedule it
