Abstract
This study was performed among coal miners in the remote location Svea, Spitsbergen. The shift schedule used to be 7 days on and 7 days off. The aim of this study was to investigate possible changes in health after a voluntary implementation of a new shift schedule, with periods of 14 days on and 14 days off, for 74 percent of the workers in 2007. A questionnaire was distributed to all employees before and two times after the new shift schedule, comprising questions on type of work, shift schedule, pain, sleep, stress and coping. Ninety nine percent of the employees responded; 274 in 2006, 307 in 2007 and 312 in 2008. Work neither in the 14/14 shift nor 7/7 shift was related to any change in the health after these two years. The coping index for workers in the 14/14 shift improved.
