Free tool
Shift schedule planner
A shift schedule is a repeating cycle of day shifts, night shifts and days off for each crew. This planner puts one of ten patterns on real dates, shows four or eight weeks for every crew, and works out the hours in each workweek so you can see which weeks go over 40 hours.
Average hours per weekequalsHours per cycle × 7 ÷ Days in the cycle
Hours over in a workweekequalsHours worked in that workweek − 40, if more than 0
Summary
DuPont: 4 crews, 28-day cycle, 42 hours a week on average
Every hour of the week has exactly one crew on shift. Crew A: 3 of 4 workweeks go over 40 hours, and the busiest workweek is 72 hours.
DuPont, cycle day 1 on 2026-11-02, workweek from Monday at 07:00, threshold 40 hours. Planning tool, not legal advice. From theleansuite.com/tools/shift-schedule-planner.
4 weeks, crew by crew
- DDay 07:00 to 19:00 (12 h)
- NNight 19:00 to 07:00 (12 h)
- -Day off
| Week of | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov | 2NMon 2 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 3NTue 3 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 4NWed 4 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 5NThu 5 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 6-Fri 6 Nov, day off | 7-Sat 7 Nov, day off | 8-Sun 8 Nov, day off |
| 9 Nov | 9DMon 9 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 10DTue 10 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 11DWed 11 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 12-Thu 12 Nov, day off | 13NFri 13 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 14NSat 14 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 15NSun 15 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 |
| 16 Nov | 16-Mon 16 Nov, day off | 17-Tue 17 Nov, day off | 18-Wed 18 Nov, day off | 19DThu 19 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 20DFri 20 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 21DSat 21 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 22DSun 22 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 |
| 23 Nov | 23-Mon 23 Nov, day off | 24-Tue 24 Nov, day off | 25-Wed 25 Nov, day off | 26-Thu 26 Nov, day off | 27-Fri 27 Nov, day off | 28-Sat 28 Nov, day off | 29-Sun 29 Nov, day off |
| Week of | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov | 2-Mon 2 Nov, day off | 3-Tue 3 Nov, day off | 4-Wed 4 Nov, day off | 5-Thu 5 Nov, day off | 6-Fri 6 Nov, day off | 7-Sat 7 Nov, day off | 8-Sun 8 Nov, day off |
| 9 Nov | 9NMon 9 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 10NTue 10 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 11NWed 11 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 12NThu 12 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 13-Fri 13 Nov, day off | 14-Sat 14 Nov, day off | 15-Sun 15 Nov, day off |
| 16 Nov | 16DMon 16 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 17DTue 17 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 18DWed 18 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 19-Thu 19 Nov, day off | 20NFri 20 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 21NSat 21 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 22NSun 22 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 |
| 23 Nov | 23-Mon 23 Nov, day off | 24-Tue 24 Nov, day off | 25-Wed 25 Nov, day off | 26DThu 26 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 27DFri 27 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 28DSat 28 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 29DSun 29 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 |
| Week of | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov | 2-Mon 2 Nov, day off | 3-Tue 3 Nov, day off | 4-Wed 4 Nov, day off | 5DThu 5 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 6DFri 6 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 7DSat 7 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 8DSun 8 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 |
| 9 Nov | 9-Mon 9 Nov, day off | 10-Tue 10 Nov, day off | 11-Wed 11 Nov, day off | 12-Thu 12 Nov, day off | 13-Fri 13 Nov, day off | 14-Sat 14 Nov, day off | 15-Sun 15 Nov, day off |
| 16 Nov | 16NMon 16 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 17NTue 17 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 18NWed 18 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 19NThu 19 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 20-Fri 20 Nov, day off | 21-Sat 21 Nov, day off | 22-Sun 22 Nov, day off |
| 23 Nov | 23DMon 23 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 24DTue 24 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 25DWed 25 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 26-Thu 26 Nov, day off | 27NFri 27 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 28NSat 28 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 29NSun 29 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 |
| Week of | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov | 2DMon 2 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 3DTue 3 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 4DWed 4 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 5-Thu 5 Nov, day off | 6NFri 6 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 7NSat 7 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 8NSun 8 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 |
| 9 Nov | 9-Mon 9 Nov, day off | 10-Tue 10 Nov, day off | 11-Wed 11 Nov, day off | 12DThu 12 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 13DFri 13 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 14DSat 14 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 | 15DSun 15 Nov, Day shift 07:00 to 19:00 |
| 16 Nov | 16-Mon 16 Nov, day off | 17-Tue 17 Nov, day off | 18-Wed 18 Nov, day off | 19-Thu 19 Nov, day off | 20-Fri 20 Nov, day off | 21-Sat 21 Nov, day off | 22-Sun 22 Nov, day off |
| 23 Nov | 23NMon 23 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 24NTue 24 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 25NWed 25 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 26NThu 26 Nov, Night shift 19:00 to 07:00 | 27-Fri 27 Nov, day off | 28-Sat 28 Nov, day off | 29-Sun 29 Nov, day off |
Hours per workweek and the 40-hour check
Each workweek is a fixed 168 hours from Monday at 07:00. Weeks are not averaged: a week under 40 does not cancel a week over. These are the 4 workweeks after which the pattern and the calendar week repeat. Weeks over are dark, with the hours over.
| Crew | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 48+8 | 72+32 | 48+8 | 0 |
| B | 0 | 48+8 | 72+32 | 48+8 |
| C | 48+8 | 0 | 48+8 | 72+32 |
| D | 72+32 | 48+8 | 0 | 48+8 |
| Crew | Shifts per cycle | Hours per cycle | Weekends fully off from your start date | Weeks over | Hours over a week, average | Busiest week |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 14 | 168 | 2 of 4 | 3 of 4 | 12 | 72 |
| B | 14 | 168 | 2 of 4 | 3 of 4 | 12 | 72 |
| C | 14 | 168 | 2 of 4 | 3 of 4 | 12 | 72 |
| D | 14 | 168 | 2 of 4 | 3 of 4 | 12 | 72 |
Computed from the cycle
| Crews needed | 4 |
|---|---|
| Cycle length | 28 days |
| Shifts per crew per cycle | 14 |
| Average hours per week | 42 |
| Longest run of shifts in a row | 4 |
| Longest run of days off in a row | 7 |
| Most night shifts in a row | 4 |
| Shortest time between shifts | 12 hours |
| Weekends fully off, any start weekday | 0 to 2 of 4 |
| Rotation | Changes between day and night |
| Every hour covered by exactly one crew | Yes: no gap hours, no overlap hours |
All four sources give the same crew sequence and the same 28-day length. They disagree on who invented it and when; the pack makes no claim about that. This is a planning tool, not legal advice: it does not know your state, your contract or your exemptions.
Next step
Want to track this every week?
Bring this result to a 45-minute demo and we will show where it fits in LeanSuite's Job Cover Matrix.
How it works
From a cycle to a calendar
Every pattern is stored as one repeating string per crew: a letter for each shift that starts that day and a dash for a day off. The calendar is that string laid on real dates from the day you pick as cycle day 1. Everything else is counted from the same strings.
Hours. Shifts times shift length gives the hours per cycle, and times 7 over the days in the cycle gives the average a week. Workweeks. The planner cuts the roster into fixed 168-hour workweeks from the start day and hour you choose, adds the hours that fall in each, and marks the weeks over the threshold. Coverage. It checks every hour of the week and counts the crews on shift: a 24/7 pattern needs exactly one at all times.
Put the same pattern on a handover form with the shift handover template, and plan who covers an absence with a skills matrix and the cross-training plan. Track missed shifts in the absenteeism tracker. The takt time calculator turns the hours a line runs into the pace it must hold, and a tiered meeting is where each shift sets its day.
Worked example
Illustrative numbers, not a benchmarkThe DuPont pattern, four crews, cycle day 1 on Monday 2 November 2026, workweek from Monday at 07:00 (the tool opens with this).
- 1Crew A works 14 twelve-hour shifts in 28 days: 14 × 12 = 168 hours.
- 2Average = 168 × 7 ÷ 28 = 42 hours a week.
- 3The four workweeks have 48, 72, 48 and 0 hours.
- 4Over 40: 8 + 32 + 8 + 0 = 48 hours in 28 days, which is 12 hours a week, not the 2 that the average suggests.
Where the rules come from
Overtime. In the United States, overtime is due for hours over 40 in a workweek, a fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours, and hours are not averaged over two or more weeks (US Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #23; 29 CFR 778.104). States can add their own rules, for example daily overtime (US Department of Labor, state laws). In Ontario, most employees get overtime after 44 hours in a work week (Government of Ontario).
Patterns. Each definition was read in at least two public scheduling guides, and the template page lists them and where they disagree. A pattern name can mean different cycles on different sites, so the planner shows the exact cycle for every crew.
Fatigue. The planner does not rate patterns for safety. For guidance see the UK Health and Safety Executive, Managing shift work (HSG256).
Last updated 21 October 2026. A planning tool, not legal advice. Take the shift schedule pack for the PDF with every pattern and the Excel roster.
Embed this calculator
Teaching this, or writing about it? Paste this code into your site, course page or intranet and the calculator works right there. It is free, with no sign-up.
<iframe src="https://www.theleansuite.com/tools/shift-schedule-planner/embed" title="Shift schedule planner by LeanSuite" width="100%" height="2600" style="border:0;max-width:1000px" loading="lazy" allow="clipboard-write"></iframe>
<p style="font:13px/1.4 sans-serif"><a href="https://www.theleansuite.com/tools/shift-schedule-planner">Shift schedule planner</a> by LeanSuite</p>How LeanSuite helps
A job cover matrix shows who is qualified to cover each job. LeanSuite builds it from skill levels and signed-off procedures, so you can cover an absence fast and spot single points of failure.
See Job Cover MatrixFAQ
Shift schedule planner: common questions
Four for most patterns, because 168 hours of cover a week at 12 hours a shift needs two crews on shift at any time and each crew works about half the weeks. The DDNNOO pattern covers every hour with three crews, at an average of 56 hours a week. The planner computes the check that every hour has exactly one crew on shift, and shows that two crews on 12-hour shifts cover only 12 hours a day.
In the United States the weekly overtime rule counts each workweek on its own. A crew on the DuPont pattern averages 42 hours a week, but its four workweeks can be 48, 72, 48 and 0 hours. The weeks over 40 count in full and the zero-hour week does not offset them. The planner shows the hours in each workweek and how many are over.
Yes. A workweek is a fixed period of 168 hours that you choose, and where it starts decides how the hours of each shift fall into weeks. Try each start day and hour in the planner, pick one and keep it.
DuPont is a 28-day cycle with a week off every four weeks. Pitman is a 14-day cycle of 2 on, 2 off, 3 on, 2 off, 2 on, 3 off with crews fixed on days or nights. Panama uses the same rhythm but each crew works 14 days of days and then 14 days of nights. The sources do not agree on every detail of the names, so each pattern's definition is shown with the planner.
Yes. Change the overtime threshold to 44. For most employees in Ontario overtime begins after 44 hours in a work week, and there is no overtime on a daily basis unless a contract or collective agreement says otherwise. Check your own situation, because averaging agreements and exemptions exist.
No. The planner counts hours from the cycle you pick. It does not know your state, your exemptions, your meal breaks or your contract. Some states add daily overtime. Ask your HR lead or an employment lawyer before you change a pattern.
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