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Effect of Workplace Fatigue Assessment on Occupational Fatigue Detection among Shift Workers in Nigeria

Abstract

Occupational fatigue is an important workplace health and safety concern among shift workers in Nigeria, particularly among employees exposed to extended working hours, night shifts, rotating schedules, insufficient rest periods, high workloads, and demanding work environments. Persistent occupational fatigue may reduce concentration, alertness, reaction time, decision-making ability, productivity, and work performance and may increase the risk of workplace errors, accidents, and injuries. However, occupational fatigue may remain undetected when workers normalize tiredness as part of their employment, fear negative consequences from reporting fatigue, or lack access to systematic workplace health assessment. Workplace fatigue assessment provides an opportunity to identify workers experiencing excessive or persistent fatigue through occupational health programmes, employee health assessments, shift-monitoring systems, workplace surveys, and other structured assessment mechanisms. Early detection may facilitate appropriate work-rest arrangements, fatigue-management interventions, shift scheduling adjustments, occupational health evaluation, and other preventive measures. Against this background, this study investigates the effect of workplace fatigue assessment on occupational fatigue detection among shift workers in Nigeria. The study will be anchored on the Job Demands–Resources Model, Fatigue Risk Management Systems Framework, and Health Belief Model. The Job Demands–Resources Model explains how excessive job demands, long working hours, workload, emotional demands, and inadequate recovery may contribute to fatigue, while adequate workplace resources and support may help workers manage occupational demands. The Fatigue Risk Management Systems Framework emphasizes systematic identification, assessment, monitoring, and control of fatigue-related risks through organizational policies, work scheduling, worker education, and appropriate preventive interventions. The Health Belief Model explains how workers' perceptions of fatigue susceptibility, perceived consequences, perceived benefits of fatigue assessment, perceived barriers, and cues to action may influence participation in workplace fatigue assessment and reporting. Collectively, these theoretical perspectives provide a suitable framework for explaining how workplace fatigue assessment may influence occupational fatigue detection among shift workers in Nigeria. The study will adopt a quantitative cross-sectional analytical or quasi-experimental research design. The study population will comprise adult employees working rotating, night, extended, or other shift schedules in selected organizations across Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique will be used to select states, industries, organizations, workplaces, departments, and eligible shift workers. Workplace fatigue assessment will be measured using indicators such as availability of fatigue assessment programmes, assessment coverage, frequency of fatigue assessments, assessment of working hours, shift duration, number of consecutive shifts, night-shift exposure, rest periods, workload, sleep duration, perceived fatigue, availability of validated fatigue assessment tools, occupational health personnel, fatigue education, work-rest policies, and fatigue-reporting mechanisms. Occupational fatigue detection will be assessed using indicators such as elevated fatigue scores, excessive daytime sleepiness, reduced alertness, difficulty concentrating, reduced reaction ability, sleep-related fatigue, work-related exhaustion, workers identified as being at increased fatigue risk, newly detected occupational fatigue, referrals for occupational health assessment, and workers requiring fatigue-management interventions. Data will be collected using structured questionnaires, validated fatigue assessment instruments, shift schedules, attendance and working-hour records, occupational health records, workplace observation checklists, and fatigue-monitoring or incident records where available. Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize workers' demographic and occupational characteristics, shift patterns, fatigue exposure, assessment coverage, and occupational fatigue detection rates. Inferential statistical techniques, including chi-square tests, correlation analysis, and logistic or multiple regression analysis, will be used to determine the effect of workplace fatigue assessment on occupational fatigue detection. Where appropriate, fatigue detection rates before and after implementation of workplace fatigue assessment activities may be compared to determine changes associated with the intervention. Diagnostic tests will also be conducted to assess the reliability, validity, and robustness of the findings. The study is expected to find that workplace fatigue assessment has a significant positive effect on occupational fatigue detection among shift workers in Nigeria. Shift workers who participate in systematic workplace fatigue assessment are expected to have a higher likelihood of previously unrecognized occupational fatigue being identified than workers without access to such assessment. Routine assessment may facilitate early recognition of excessive fatigue, sleep-related problems, inadequate recovery, excessive workload, prolonged shift exposure, and other factors associated with occupational fatigue. Early detection may support appropriate work-rest scheduling, adjustment of shift patterns, fatigue-management education, workload review, sleep-health education, occupational health evaluation, and other preventive measures. Workplace-based assessment may also reduce barriers to reporting by incorporating fatigue monitoring into routine occupational health and safety programmes. Organizational awareness of fatigue risks may encourage employers to strengthen fatigue-management policies and reduce work practices that increase fatigue-related risks. Conversely, fear of disciplinary consequences, workplace culture, inadequate confidentiality, shortage of occupational health personnel, limited fatigue-monitoring resources, excessive workloads, staffing shortages, and weak fatigue-management policies may reduce the effectiveness of workplace fatigue assessment. The study therefore expects systematic, confidential, and appropriately implemented workplace fatigue assessment to contribute significantly to improved detection and early management of occupational fatigue among shift workers in Nigeria. The study is expected to contribute to the literature on workplace fatigue assessment, occupational fatigue detection, shift work, occupational health and safety, worker well-being, workplace productivity, fatigue risk management, employee health, and public health in Nigeria. The findings will provide useful information to the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, occupational health and safety authorities, employers, human resource departments, occupational physicians, nurses, safety officers, labour organizations, shift workers, development partners, and policymakers regarding strategies for reducing fatigue-related occupational risks. The study will also provide evidence-based recommendations for expanding workplace fatigue assessment programmes, strengthening occupational health surveillance, improving shift scheduling and work-rest arrangements, increasing worker education on fatigue management, improving fatigue-reporting mechanisms, strengthening employer fatigue-management policies, and integrating routine fatigue assessment into appropriate workplace health and safety programmes across Nigeria.

Keywords: Workplace fatigue assessment, occupational fatigue detection, shift workers, shift work, occupational health, fatigue risk management, worker safety, workplace health, employee well-being, work-related fatigue, Nigeria, occupational safety.