Compensate on-call work with time off in lieu, extra pay, or both, and put a cap on how much one person can take on. Google's SRE book describes exactly that: time off or cash, capped at a proportion of salary, so that no one can volunteer themselves into burnout.
Why compensation is a safety issue
On-call is work. It restricts where you can be, whether you can drink at a family dinner, how well you sleep. If it is unpaid and unrecognised, the people who carry it quietly resent it.
The SRE book notes that the cap on compensation also limits how much on-call work one person does, which reduces the risk of burnout. Money can create a perverse incentive, and the cap is the guard against it.
Options to consider
- Time off in lieu. A night spent on an incident earns a late start or a day off. It addresses the actual cost, which is rest.
- Flat stipend per week on call. Easy to administer and predictable for budgets.
- Per-incident pay. Rewards real work, but can encourage people to leave problems unfixed.
- Rotation relief. Skipping a rotation after a hard stretch.
- Local law and contracts. Working time rules differ by country. Check yours, since some places treat on-call time as working time. This post is not legal advice.
Designing the policy
- Decide the unit: per shift, per page, per hour of response.
- Set the cap in writing, as a share of salary or a maximum number of weeks.
- Make time off automatic. People under pressure will not ask for it.
- Let managers cover meetings the day after a bad night.
- Review it yearly with the people who carry the pager.
What not to do
Do not reward heroics. Praising the person who fixed everything at 4 a.m. teaches the team that fragile systems are fine as long as someone is brave. Praise the person who made the 4 a.m. page unnecessary.
Fairness across the team
Review who actually carries the burden. If a few people take most of the weekends, because they are single or live nearby, the policy is quietly unfair even if the pay is equal. Offer swaps freely and track weekend and holiday load per person across the year.
Also consider the secondary and escalation roles. Being reachable as a backup has a cost, even if the phone never rings. Some teams pay a smaller amount for it. Whatever you choose, say it out loud so people are not left guessing whether the effort is seen.
Quick check
Is a stipend enough without time off?
Usually not. A stipend pays for the inconvenience but does not restore sleep. After a night of incident work, time off is the part that matters.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
