Quick Answer
A FIFO swing is one continuous block of time a fly-in fly-out worker spends away from home for work — the travel-in day, the consecutive shifts worked on site, and the travel-out day. It is a single trip inside a roster pattern.
- Starts: when you leave home or present at the airport for travel in (some agreements define it as the first pre-start on site).
- Ends: after the final shift, demob and the travel-out day, when you reach home.
- Typical length: 8 to 14 days on site, with shutdown swings running up to about 21 days.
- Then: the rostered break (R&R) before the next swing begins the cycle again.
Swing vs roster: the distinction that matters
People use the words interchangeably, but they mean different things. The roster is the repeating pattern — written as 8/6, 2/1 or 4/4, meaning days on and days off. The swing is one instance of the work block within that pattern. A worker on an 8/6 roster does roughly 22 swings a year; someone on 2/1 does around 17 longer ones. When a site asks "which swing are you on?", they usually mean which crew rotation you sit in — A crew or B crew — because two crews on opposite swings keep the operation covered every day of the year.
The person who covers your role while you are on your break is your back-to-back. Good handover between back-to-backs is what stops jobs stalling for a week at a time.
What a swing actually looks like, start to finish
Pre-swing (the day or two before)
Flight details and site access are confirmed, compliance is checked, PPE is packed and any expiring tickets are sorted. If something has lapsed, this is where the swing falls apart.
Travel in
Drive to the airport or terminal, charter or commercial flight to the mine or a nearby regional airport, then a bus to camp. Whether this day is paid, part-paid or your own time depends on the agreement.
Arrival and site induction
Camp allocation, site or refresher induction, sign-ons and pre-start briefing before you are cleared to work.
The worked days
Consecutive shifts, usually 10 to 12.5 hours, day shift or night shift, sometimes split as a block of each within one swing.
Last shift and demob
Hand over, return keys, tools and gear, close out paperwork and timesheets, and clear camp.
Travel out and R&R
Bus, flight and drive home, then the rostered break before the next swing starts the cycle again.
When does a swing officially begin and end?
Day to day, the swing runs from the moment you leave home to the moment you get back. Contractually, it depends on the document covering your site, and there are usually three versions:
| Swing starts at | What it usually means for you |
|---|---|
| Airport or terminal check-in | Travel day is a paid work day, often at ordinary rates, and may count towards ordinary hours |
| Arrival on site or at camp | Travel is often covered by a fixed travel allowance rather than hourly pay |
| First pre-start briefing | Travel is generally your own time; the swing pays from the first shift |
This one clause is worth real money over a year, so ask about it directly. There is more detail in how FIFO pay works in Australia.
Common FIFO swing lengths in Australia
8 days on / 6 days off
A short, popular roster on WA gold and iron ore sites. Even-time-ish and easier on family life.
2 weeks on / 1 week off (2/1)
One of the most common patterns in Australian mining. Long swing, solid earnings, shorter break.
9 / 5 and 9 / 4
Nine-day swings with a four or five-day break, often used to keep weekend coverage rotating.
Even time (2/2, 4/4, 14/14)
Equal work and break. Common on remote or offshore sites and popular with workers travelling long distances.
4 on / 3 off
Short swings typical of DIDO or residential-adjacent work rather than long-haul FIFO.
Shutdown swings (10 to 21 straight days)
Campaign work with long unbroken swings, then a longer break or a move to the next shutdown.
Which pattern a site runs comes down to remoteness, flight costs, production requirements and the enterprise agreement. For a fuller breakdown, see the most common FIFO rosters.
Things people get wrong about swings
A swing is not the same as a roster
The roster is the repeating pattern (2/1, 8/6). The swing is the single block of days you are away for. One roster produces many swings.
The swing may start before your first shift
On some agreements the swing officially begins when you present at the airport or terminal; on others it begins at the first pre-start. That distinction decides whether the travel day is paid.
Days off are not annual leave
R&R between swings is your rostered break, not leave. Annual leave is separate and is used to take swings off.
Swings can be extended
Weather, breakdowns, flight cancellations or crew shortages can add days. Most agreements cover how an extended swing is paid and what happens to the following break.
Night shift changes the shape of a swing
A swing may be all days, all nights, or a changeover mid-swing — which affects fatigue management and shift loadings.
The rules sitting behind a swing
Rosters and swings sit in the award or agreement
Modern awards such as the Mining Industry Award and Black Coal Mining Industry Award, plus site enterprise agreements, define ordinary hours, how they are averaged across a swing, roster change notice and how travel days are treated.
Fatigue management applies across the whole swing
WHS and mining safety legislation require managing fatigue risk, which on long swings means consecutive-shift limits, minimum rest between shifts, controls around night shift changeovers and rules on driving after a shift or a flight.
Hours must be recorded, swing by swing
Employers must keep accurate records of hours worked, overtime and allowances. Where ordinary hours are averaged over the swing, those records are what prove the averaging was applied correctly.
Roster changes usually need notice
Most agreements set out how much notice is required to change a swing or roster pattern, and what applies if a worker is called in early or held over.
If you are the one scheduling swings
Plan swings against compliance expiry
Check tickets, medicals and inductions against the swing dates, not today's date — a licence expiring mid-swing strands a worker on site.
Roster crews, not names in a spreadsheet
Swing patterns, back-to-back coverage and travel dates are easier to see on a visual schedule than in a workbook.
Capture hours daily on site
Shift hours entered and approved during the swing avoid the pay-day reconstruction that causes underpayments.
Tie travel to the roster
Flights, buses and camp bookings sequenced with swing start and finish dates cut no-shows and wasted seats.
Watch consecutive shifts and rest
Track fatigue exposure across the swing, including changeovers and extended days, and record the controls applied.
Questions to ask about a swing before you commit
- What is the roster pattern, and how many days is one swing on site?
- Is the swing all day shift, all night shift, or a changeover mid-swing?
- Does the swing officially start at the airport, at camp, or at the first pre-start?
- Are travel days paid, allowance-only or your own time?
- What is the point of hire, and are flights from your home city covered?
- How many consecutive shifts are worked, and what rest applies between them?
- What happens to pay and the break if the swing is extended?
- How much notice is required to change the roster or swing dates?
- Who is your back-to-back, and how is handover done?
- When are timesheets due and approved within the swing?
Related reading: What does FIFO mean · How does FIFO pay work · Most common FIFO rosters · What mobilisation means in mining.
FIFO swings — FAQs
This article is general information for Australian mining and heavy industry workers and employers, not legal advice. Swing length, roster change notice, travel treatment and fatigue controls are set by the applicable award, enterprise agreement or site procedure — confirm your position with Fair Work, your employer or your own adviser.
