Eligibility Criteria

Open-Access SHZs (e.g., in Public Parks)

Shared Health Zones (SHZs) located in public natural settings such as national parks, coastal reserves, or designated trails are freely accessible to all individuals at all times, regardless of occupation or health background. These zones are grounded in equality, coexistence, and the universal right to reconnect with nature.

While no formal eligibility screening exists for these open sites, the core intention is to support:

  • Individuals with health challenges resulting from disrupted circadian rhythms

  • Those affected by indoor confinement, artificial light exposure, and prolonged stress

All users are expected to respect the intent of these spaces and adhere to community guidelines designed to maintain inclusivity, safety, and restorative calm.

Structured SHZs (Private, Institutional, or Therapeutic Settings)

For SHZs developed by employers, health providers, or in semi-public partnerships, the following criteria help guide priority access while ensuring no one is excluded without reason.

Priority Groups

The following individuals are prioritised in time-slot booking, overnight use, or guided access:

  1. Night shift workers including but not limited to:

    • Healthcare workers, emergency responders, aged care and disability staff

    • Transport operators, logistics personnel, security professionals

    • Cleaning, sanitation, maintenance, and industrial workers operating overnight

  2. Rotating and split-shift workers

  3. Long-haul drivers and overnight delivery staff

  4. Early morning or twilight shift workers whose sleep cycles are disrupted

  5. Remote workers facing prolonged indoor confinement and screen exposure

  6. Gig economy workers with unstable working hours and limited daylight access

  7. Individuals with diagnosed circadian rhythm disorders or chronic fatigue

  8. People experiencing burnout, sensory fatigue, or nature-deficit symptoms

  9. Carers of night-dependent family members (e.g., disability or palliative care)

Secondary Access (General Public)

Outside priority windows or in less-utilised times, SHZs are open to everyone seeking wellness, body freedom, or nature immersion. This includes:

  • Daytime users seeking stress relief

  • Individuals exploring minimalist/naturist lifestyles

  • Tourists interested in clothing-optional or light-clothing environments

  • Those recovering from trauma, chronic illness, or psychological fatigue

No Exclusion by Attire, Age, or Body

SHZs follow the NRE Code of Respect: No person shall be excluded or judged based on:

  • Body shape, weight, scars, or disabilities

  • Age, gender identity, or cultural background

  • Clothing choices (minimal, light, sheer, or none — where lawful)

Legal and Scientific Basis for Prioritizing Night Shift and Sleep-Deprived Workers

Night shift workers often struggle with intense fatigue and drowsiness, especially in the early morning hours. In high-responsibility fields like healthcare, such fatigue can jeopardize safety if not properly managed. Providing Safe Healing Zones for rest and recovery during shifts is one strategy to help mitigate these risks.

Occupational Health Laws and Duty-of-Care Obligations

Employers have clear legal obligations to protect workers from the health and safety risks of fatigue, especially for those working at night or in extended shifts. International labour standards underscore this duty: the ILO’s Night Work Convention (No. 171) explicitly requires “specific measures” to safeguard night workers’ health and safetyglobalhealthrights.org

. Under this binding standard, night shift employees must be offered regular free health assessments to detect work-related health issuesglobalhealthrights.org, and workplaces must ensure on-site first aid and rapid medical care is available during night hoursglobalhealthrights.org. These measures reflect a broad duty of care – recognizing that night workers face unique risks and thus need proactive protection.

National laws and regulations reinforce similar obligations. For example, in the European Union and UK, the Working Time Directive and national regulations limit most night shifts to 8 hours and mandate health evaluations for night staffgowlingwlg.com

. Such rules aim to prevent excessive fatigue and catch health problems early. Beyond specific hours limits, general occupational safety laws impose a duty-of-care on employers to manage fatigue as a workplace hazardgowlingwlg.com. In jurisdictions like the UK, an employer can be held liable under health and safety legislation if a fatigue-related accident occurs and risks were not properly controlledgowlingwlg.com. Likewise, countries such as Australia treat fatigue as a recognized hazard – a model Work Health and Safety Code of Practice there directs employers to identify and minimize fatigue risks “so far as is reasonably practicable,” treating extended work hours and night shifts as factors that require special risk managementsafeworkaustralia.gov.au. In sum, across international conventions and national codes, there is a consistent legal framework establishing that night shift and irregular-hour workers must be given heightened protection. Prioritizing these workers for access to Safe Healing Zones (e.g. dedicated rest and recovery areas) would align with employers’ established obligations to provide safe work conditions and appropriate facilities for worker well-being.

Health Impacts of Night Work and Circadian Disruption

Modern medical research strongly supports prioritizing night and split-shift workers – as well as anyone chronically sleep-deprived – for health interventions like Safe Healing Zones. Sleep deprivation and circadian rhythm disruption (the misalignment of one’s internal body clock due to night work) have profound effects on physical health. Over years, abnormal schedules can predispose workers to chronic illnesses: studies have linked long-term night shift work to higher rates of cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and even cancer. A comprehensive 2025 meta-analysis found that night shift workers experience about a 13% increased risk of heart disease and stroke events, and a 27% higher risk of death from cardiovascular causes, compared to non-shift workerspubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

. In fact, the World Health Organization’s cancer research agency (IARC) now classifies night shift work that disrupts circadian rhythms as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” This Group 2A classification is based on observed links between long-term night work and elevated rates of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancersiarc.who.int. The biological stress of irregular sleep-wake cycles is thought to underlie these risks. For instance, working under artificial light at night confuses the body’s hormonal rhythms and metabolism – increasing the likelihood of weight gain, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes in shift workersfrontiersin.org. In short, the scientific evidence is unequivocal that chronic night work and sleep loss can seriously degrade physical health over time. Providing rest and recovery opportunities (like SHZs) for these workers is a preventive approach grounded in this evidence.

Disrupted sleep schedules also take a major toll on mental health and cognitive function, reinforcing the need for restorative “safe zones.” Shift workers – especially those on rotating or overnight shifts – show significantly higher rates of mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety, compared to daytime workers. A 2019 meta-analysis of longitudinal studies found shift work was associated with a 28% higher risk of developing adverse mental health outcomes (primarily depressive symptoms), with female shift workers particularly vulnerable to depression (nearly 1.7 times the risk of their day-working counterparts)pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Chronically sleep-deprived individuals often suffer irritability, anxiety, and impaired stress tolerance as wellcdc.gov. From a cognitive standpoint, lack of sleep reduces alertness and memory and slows reaction times. Neuroscience has shown that extended wakefulness can mimic impairment from alcohol: after about 17 hours awake, a person’s cognitive performance drops to a level equivalent to a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.05% (the legal limit for driving in many countries)cdc.gov. At 24 hours without sleep, the impairment is roughly equal to 0.10% BACcdc.gov – well beyond “legal intoxication.” This kind of fatigue-induced cognitive decline underscores how dangerous it can be for employees to work through the night or in a severely sleep-deprived state. It further validates the need to prioritize these individuals for interventions like Safe Healing Zones, where they could recuperate and mitigate the mental health strains of their work schedules.

Fatigue, Performance Decline and Workplace Safety Risks

Night shift and sleep-deprived workers not only face health challenges – they also pose heightened safety and performance risks in the workplace. Fatigue-related lapses have been a factor in some of the worst industrial disasters, and on a smaller scale, everyday error rates climb noticeably during night hours. Research by occupational safety agencies shows that accidents and mistakes are far more likely on night shifts. For example, the U.S. CDC reports that compared to a regular daytime schedule, working at night increases the risk of workplace accidents by about 28% (even evening shifts show a 15% increase in errors)cdc.gov

. Drowsy employees are more prone to mishandling machinery, making calculation errors, or nodding off at the wheel during commutes. Recognizing this elevated risk, safety regulators urge employers to conduct dedicated fatigue risk assessments for night work. It is not safe to assume that a daytime safety plan will suffice for overnight operations. The UK’s Health and Safety Executive, for instance, advises that companies perform separate risk evaluations for night shifts, acknowledging additional hazards that come with working through normal sleep hoursgowlingwlg.com. Employers are expected to adapt work conditions at night – through measures like limiting consecutive night shifts, scheduling breaks or naps, and monitoring workers for fatigue – to fulfill their duty of care. Providing Safe Healing Zones where night staff can take recuperative breaks fits squarely within these recommended controls to reduce risk.

From a human performance perspective, fatigue erodes nearly every aspect of functioning needed for safe work. Alertness and reaction time decline steeply after many hours awake, and this effect is exacerbated during the circadian low point in the pre-dawn hourssafeworkaustralia.gov.au

. Tired workers exhibit slower reflexes, poorer coordination, reduced concentration, and impaired judgmentsafeworkaustralia.gov.au. In safety-critical industries (healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, etc.), such impairments can be fatal. Micro-sleeps – brief, uncontrollable lapses into sleep lasting a few seconds – become a danger when someone is severely exhaustedsafeworkaustralia.gov.au. A split-second of inattention is enough to miss a warning signal or collide with a hazard. Studies have documented that fatigued individuals can fall asleep momentarily without even realizing it, illustrating how high the risk can become in the absence of proper restsafeworkaustralia.gov.au. These performance deficits during night work are the exact issues that Safe Healing Zones are meant to address. By giving workers a controlled, quiet space to recover alertness (for example, through short restorative naps or relaxation techniques), SHZs help maintain higher cognitive functioning and vigilance on the job. In effect, they serve as an engineering control for fatigue – a physical safety measure to counteract the performance decline that accumulates overnight. Risk assessments uniformly conclude that fatigue mitigation strategies (adequate breaks, napping policies, environmental adjustments) are critical for night operationsgowlingwlg.com. Prioritizing night shift and chronically sleep-deprived workers for access to these Safe Healing Zones is therefore not just a health benefit, but a risk management imperative to prevent errors, injuries, and tragedies during night-time work.

Conclusion

In light of the legal mandates and scientific findings outlined above, it is clear that night shift workers, rotating/split shift workers, and others suffering chronic sleep deprivation merit special consideration for health and safety interventions. Occupational health laws and international standards already recognize the heightened duty of care owed to these groups, requiring employers to implement measures that reduce fatigue and protect worker well-beingglobalhealthrights.org

gowlingwlg.com. Meanwhile, a robust body of scientific evidence links night and long-hour schedules to serious physical health risks (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer) and mental health challenges (depression, anxiety), as well as acute decrements in performance and safetypubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govpubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Providing access to Safe Healing Zones for these vulnerable workers is an innovative, proactive response that aligns with both the policy framework and the evidence base. It offers a practical way to fulfill employers’ legal obligations (by actively managing the risk of fatigue on the job) and to apply proven fatigue countermeasures (by giving workers time and space to recover). In sum, prioritizing night shift and sleep-deprived individuals for SHZ access is not only ethically and legally justified, but also scientifically prudent – a policy aligned solution to enhance workplace health, safety, and performance in our 24/7 economy.

Sources:

  • International Labour Organization – Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171)globalhealthrights.org

  • UK Health and Safety Executive – Working Time Regulations & Duty of Caregowlingwlg.com

  • Safe Work Australia – Fatigue Management Code of Practice (2025)safeworkaustralia.gov.au

  • NIOSH/CDC – Worker Fatigue Factscdc.gov

    ; Sleep Deprivation vs. Alcohol Impairmentcdc.gov

  • WHO/IARC – Night Shift Work Classification (2020)iarc.who.int

  • Frontiers in Public Health – Xi et al. (2025), Meta-Analysis on Night Shifts & CVDpubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

    (DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1668848).

  • American Journal of Public Health – Torquati et al. (2019), Shift Work & Mental Health Meta-Analysispubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

    (DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2019.305278).

  • Zhu & Mi (2025), Night Shift Work and Diabetes Riskfrontiersin.org

    (Front. Public Health, DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1539679).