What hours are day, swing, and night shifts on southern swing?

Typically days 7a–3p, evenings (swing) 3p–11p, nights 11p–7a — exact times vary by plant.

Why is it called a swing shift?

The evening shift 'swings' between the day and night shifts — and in this pattern, crews also swing through all three shifts each cycle.

Shift patterns

Southern Swing Schedule: Shift Hours & Calendar

The southern swing schedule covers 24/7 operations with 8-hour shifts instead of 12s: each crew works 7 consecutive day shifts, takes 2 off, works 7 evening (swing) shifts, takes 2 off, works 7 night shifts, then gets 3 off — a 28-day cycle averaging 42 hours per week. It keeps individual days short at the cost of rotating through all three shifts every month.

Get Jobeezy See it work

### Southern Swing Schedule key facts Southern swing is a 4-week, 8-hour rotating pattern: 7 day shifts, 2 off, 7 evening shifts, 2 off, 7 night shifts, 3 off. Covers 24/7 with 8-hour shifts. - Cycle: 4 weeks, 4 crews - Average hours: 42 hrs/week

Southern Swing Schedule calendar

One crew's 28-day southern swing: a week of days → evenings → nights with short breaks between
	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
Week 1	Day	Day	Day	Day	Day	Day	Day
Week 2	Off	Off	Evening	Evening	Evening	Evening	Evening
Week 3	Evening	Evening	Off	Off	Night	Night	Night
Week 4	Night	Night	Night	Night	Off	Off	Off

At a glance

Southern Swing Schedule at a glance
Shift length	8 hours
Cycle	4 weeks, 4 crews
Average hours	42 hrs/week

Who uses the southern swing schedule?

Older manufacturing plants, food processing, and facilities that never adopted 12-hour shifts.

Pros

8-hour days leave real time before/after work
No 60+ hour weeks
Everyone shares nights and weekends equally

Cons

Rotating through days → evenings → nights every month is the hardest pattern for sleep
Seven consecutive workdays per block
Only 2-day breaks between shift changes

Frequently asked questions

What hours are day, swing, and night shifts on southern swing?: Typically days 7a–3p, evenings (swing) 3p–11p, nights 11p–7a — exact times vary by plant.
Why is it called a swing shift?: The evening shift 'swings' between the day and night shifts — and in this pattern, crews also swing through all three shifts each cycle.