Often factories want to get the maximum use out of their equipment since it’s very expensive and only lasts some finite number of years. Many factories run 24 hours a day in rotating shifts to minimize the downtime of their machinery.

If they are 12 hour shifts, so that the people can head home at 5 with everyone else. If they are 8 hour shifts, usually for the later shifts to have an okay life balance: 5-2 for day shift, 2-11 for second shift, and a third shift option that overlaps.

Even though I’m a night person, 5 is a common time to wake up for enough people who presumably want to be productive, and the benefit of getting off work before the school day ends has to be enticing. And on the second shift side of things, they get to have lunch with loved ones before going to work, and 11 is early enough that they could potentially go out for drinks or other fun before bed.

It’s also nice that for either shift, the person has time to run errands at a time when most stores are open and activity levels are low.