Shift Swaps
Overview
The Shift Swaps functionality allows users to swap their shifts with their colleagues directly from the My Schedule screen. These requests are then processed by approvers (managers) and users are automatically informed if they were approved or rejected.
Creating New Requests
To create a shift swap, expand the menu in the top right corner of a day and select the request type: Shift swap. A New request window will display and a Date field will already be filled in.
Alternatively, click the Requests button in the top right corner of the screen.
The Requests pane will expand on the right. From the drop-down menu, select Shift swap.
A Shift swap request window will display (the same as when clicking directly on the selected day in the calendar, but without a selected date). Select the date for which you want to offer your shift for trade.
All shifts available for the swap will appear. It is possible to filter them by selecting people’s names from the Shift offers drop-down menu or selecting a Date Range of the new shift.
Click the icon to display the details of the shift.
Please note that:
As All suitable colleagues are considered all people having the same manager and being assigned to the same queue that is involved in the the shift that the employee wants to trade.
Only shifts with no absence request (in pending or approved state) and not included in any other swap request are offered as available to a shift swap.
It is not possible to swap a shift that occurred in the past or a shift that is currently in progress.
It is also possible to fill in the message that will be visible to your colleague, as well as to the approving manager.
Click the shift to select it. (To unselect it, click the shift again or click the red cross in the bottom right corner). Only one shift can be selected. Then click Send request.
The request is then visible in the Requests pane, in the Pending-Acceptance state. It is possible to click the Cancel request button to cancel it.
Please note that it is possible to cancel the request before it is approved by the manager (even if it is already accepted by the colleague).
Requests Workflow
The following happens after the request is sent:
The colleague whose shift was selected for a swap receives an email informing about the shift swap request. The request is visible in his/her My Schedule screen (in the Requests pane) and it is in the Pending-Acceptance state. It can be accepted or declined. Read more in the Accepting or Declining Requests section below.
If the shift swap request was declined by the colleague, the user receives an email informing about that fact. The request is listed as Declined.
If the shift swap request was accepted by the colleague, the manager receives an email informing about the shift swap request. The request is visible in his/her Requests screen and it is in the Pending-Approval state. It can be accepted or declined. Read more in the Requests page.
Requesting user, as well as colleague whose shift was selected for a swap, receive an email informing if the manager has accepted or declined the request.
If approval was granted, both users see the request in the Approved state. The shift swap occurs and the schedule is changed. After that, the request cannot be canceled or declined anymore. A new request must be created if there is a need to change the shift assignment.
If the request was declined, both users see it in the Declined state. It is not possible to proceed anymore with this request. A new request must be created if there is a need to change the shift assignment.
Accepting or Declining Requests
To display requests waiting for your acceptance, go to the My Schedule screen and click the Requests button in the top right corner of the screen. The Requests pane will expand. Select the Pending-Acceptance status.
Click the arrow to expand the request. The following details of the request will display:
Status – Pending-Acceptance
Created – date when the request was created
Offered shift – the shift that the requestor has offered to be taken by the colleague
Required shift – the shift that requestor would like to take, but that is currently assigned to the colleague
Message – optional comment added by the requestor
Then, click Accept or Decline. Optionally, provide an additional message.
After accepting, the request will be put in Pending-Approval status and will be forwarded to the manager who can Approve or Decline it.
If you decline the request or withdraw your acceptance before the approval, only requestor will be informed. Read more about how to withdraw the acceptance in the Canceling Requests section below.
Displaying Existing Requests
To display existing requests, click the Request button in the top right corner of the screen to expand the Requests pane.
The following filters can be used to list the requests:
Status – the current status of the request
Pending-Acceptance – requests waiting for an action from the colleague
Pending-Approval – requests waiting for an action from the manager
Approved – requests approved by the manager
Declined – requests declined by the colleague or by the manager
Canceled – request canceled by the user
Type – the type of the request (select Shift swap)
Created range (mandatory) – the date range when the request was created
Requested range – the date range for which the request was created.
All requests meeting the selected criteria will display below.
Click the arrow to expand and see the requests' details.
The approved shift is marked with a green check mark. Please note that after the approval, the tiles with Offered shift and Required shift display the initial dates and times of these shifts, however, after clicking the details icon, the details of a newly assigned shift (swapped shift) are displayed.
Canceling Requests
To cancel the request created by yourself, click the Cancel request button. This action is available for the requests in Pending-Acceptance or Pending-Approval status. If the request has already been approved by the manager, it cannot be cancelled.
Also, the person who has accepted the shift swap created by a colleague, can still cancel the acceptance before the request is approved by the manager (so in the Pending-Approval state). In such case, click Cancel acceptance.
