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Oil and Gas 

Employers: 

How to Prevent Fatigued Driving at Work 

Motor vehicle crashes cause over 40% of work-related deaths in the oil and gas extraction industry.

1

 Driver fatigue, 

which may be a result of insufcient sleep, long distances traveled to well sites, and long work shifts, is a factor in 

some of these crashes. In addition to the loss of life, the average on-the-job fatal crash is estimated to cost 

employers $671,000.2 Legal settlements can be even more costly. 

Oil and gas employers are responsible for the health and safety of their employees. This fact sheet recommends 

strategies for employers to manage fatigued driving among their workers.

What factors put workers at risk for fatigued driving? 

Time of day 

Natural body clocks (circadian rhythms) 

give strong signals that it’s time to 

sleep at night and early morning 

hours. Many people also experience 

a dip in alertness in the afternoon. 

Length of time awake 

The more hours awake, the more 

likely people are to be fatigued. 

Fatigue can impair driving and other 

tasks, similar to alcohol impairment. 

Small sleep defcits accumulated over 

time can also result in impairment. 

Monotonous tasks 

Driving for extended periods of 

time with few changes in routine 

can increase workers’ risk of 

fatigued or inattentive driving. 

Medications and 

health conditions 

Illnesses, diseases, and some 

medications may interfere with 

workers’ alertness, increasing 

the risk of fatigued driving. 

The Reality of Fatigued Driving 

An oil and gas worker was driving on a rural two-lane highway in a single unit truck in the 

afternoon. The driver was either fatigued or fell asleep, causing the truck to drift of the 

road into a ditch. The truck overturned, ejecting the driver, who was not wearing a seat 

belt. He later died at the hospital. 

Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention 1Data source: Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries 

National Institute for Occupational query system (http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/dsrv?fw). 

Safety and Health 2Data from 2013: NETS, Cost of Motor Vehicle Crashes to Employers – 2015 
"' 

What can employers do to prevent fatigued driving? 

Oil and gas employers: 

q Implement a fatigue management policy and program, and integrate it into your existing health and 

safety management system. 

q Include workers in development and implementation. 

q Audit your policy in the field to ensure it’s practical for employees and contractors. 

q Use journey management strategies to reduce fatigued driving. 

q Describe how to ensure road safety when delays occur on the well site. 

q Require front seat passengers to stay awake during trips to ensure driver alertness. 

q Limit the number of hours employees may work and drive per day or trip segment. 

q Require workers to plan for and take rest breaks during extended drives. 

q Restrict night driving, particularly when alertness levels are low. 

q Ensure compliance with regulations (such as hours-of-service) for all commercial drivers. 

q Provide a rested driver to transport workers from remote sites after extended shifts. 

q Practice open communication, and check in regularly with drivers to create a culture of caring. 

q Approach fatigue-related incidents and near misses as opportunities to learn. 

q Ensure workers/contractors are not penalized for using stop work authority to avoid fatigued driving. 

q Make sure workers have an opportunity for sufficient sleep. 

q Provide enough off-duty time for workers’ commute, basic needs such as eating, and 7 to 9 hours of sleep. 

q Provide quiet, dark, and comfortable places to sleep on-site for night or extended shift workers. Pick-up 

trucks do not meet this criteria. Allow workers to take up to 30-minute naps during extended work shifts. 

q Give incentive (such as a bonus) for workers to sleep before extended drives home at the end of hitches. 

q Encourage workers to seek places to sleep if they become too tired to drive safely and a rested driver is 

unavailable. Reimburse them for expenses. 

q Educate workers about how alcohol and drugs impair driving, and the possible side effects of prescription 

and over-the-counter medications. 

q Encourage drivers to notify their employers if they are taking medications that may affect their ability to 

drive safely so that a safe solution can be determined. 

q Consider using technologies to detect fatigue before driving (such as actigraphs that monitor rest/ 

activity cycles) and while driving (such as lane departure warning systems). 

q Identify trends in risk to improve fatigue management programs. 

q Use data as a tool to coach drivers, using positive reinforcement. 

Resources & Tools for oil and gas employers: 

NIOSH Motor Vehicle Safety at Work 

www.cdc.gov/niosh/motorvehicle 

CDC Drowsy Driving 

www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/drowsy_driving.html 

Medications and Driving 

www.aaafoundation.org/resources/resources 

My Car Does What 

https://mycardoeswhat.org 

Managing Fatigue in the Workplace 

www.ipieca.org/resources/good-practice/managingNorth American Fatigue Management Program 

www.nafmp.org/index.php?lang=en 

Mention of any company or product does not constitute endorsement by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention. In addition, citations to websites external to NIOSH do not constitute NIOSH endorsement of the sponsoring organizations or their 

programs or products. Furthermore, NIOSH is not responsible for the content of these websites. All web addresses referenced in this document were accessible 

as of the publication date. DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2018–125 • https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHPUB2018125 • March 2018 

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