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Jordan Palomares
Mrs. Hodgins
Advanced English 11 B10
January 4, 2016
Workplace Safety
In a memo from the Vice President of Quiot Manufacturing he states that his company
had a 30 percent higher accident rate than the Panoply Plant where the all shifts were shorter by
one hour. Based on this comparison and expert research on fatigue, he would like to initiate this
program at Quiot in order to lower accidents and increase productivity. However, he fails to give
data from the expert research that he cites and he fails to show any examination and
information on other factors that could impact the percentage difference. Therefore his argument
that shortening the workday will accomplish his goals is a flawed assumption.
Not only are the figures from the fatigue research missing but the statistics we have can
be deceiving. There is no information given on the number of workers at each plant and the
comparison he makes is based on only one year and more information could change the figures.
In addition, there is no information that shows how shortening the day increases productivity.
Without more research and specific facts in these areas a decision should not be made.
Another unknown influence on the fatigue factor is how many hours are part of the
present workday and does it allow for enough sleep or rest? Also, if given an extra hour from
work, it can only be assumed that people would use that time wisely. Furthermore knowing the

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time allowed for dinner breaks and rest periods given to the workers each day should be studied
before thinking that a shorter day will solve the problem.
Other pieces of information that could affect the accident rate are not mentioned. All
workplaces can be dangerous but some are more so than others. Some companies may produce
toys on equipment that is fairly easy to run while others may involve hazardous chemicals or
products that require working with dangerous equipment. Knowing the product made and the
type of machinery used in these plants could be a large factor in causing the difference of
accident rates. In addition, reviewing recent OSHA reports could show if the plants meet all
safety requirements as some of the accidents could be from carelessness. Finally,all employees
need the necessary information to do their job safely as well as productively and no information
on the type of training and supervision provided to the employees is stated in the memo. Without
this information the Vice President of Quiot could be comparing apples to oranges.
The memo recommending shortened hours is based on an assumption that tired and
fatigued workers have a higher accident rate. Although this might have some effect, without
more research and data, simply shortening the work shifts is not the most rational decision.