How to swap shifts that overlap
Sometimes it can be of beneficial for you to swap your own shift with another that are partially in overlapping with your original one on the same day. Ultimately, two main reasons can cause this:
- You want a job with another jobtype
- You want another shift at a different hour of the day
Let's take a look at how to swap shifts with a colleague whose shift is (partially) in the same time span as your own.
Here is how you do it in the Smartplan app.
Here is how you do it in the browser version.
How to request a shift-swap in the app
In the following example we are looking at Bo, who would like to swap shifts with Susan who is working in the same time span as she is on the same day. Start by clicking the shift you'd like to swap:
Then click "Handover" at the top of the screen. In order to find the right shift/colleague you would like to swap with, just click the arrow:
Then Smartplan will make you aware that some other people are already working some of the same hours as you ("employees with conflicting shifts"):
Choose the colleague you'd like to swap with and click "OK". All you have do to now is click "Hand over shift":
Smartplan will again make you aware that your colleague (Susan) already has a shift in this time span, and therefore it is only possible to swap the shifts:
Now you just have to wait for your colleague (Susan) to approve the swap and possibly an administrator. You can always keep track on who is needing to approve the shift swap:
As soon as the swap has been approved by all parties involved the shifts will get swapped on the rota.
How to accept a shift swap in the app
It is only possible to swap two shifts that are placed in the same time span by doing what's stated above. Thus, it is not possible to make a shift swap by requesting for another shift.
If your colleague has started the shift swap, all you have to do is approve it. This will be shown on the page "Me":
To accept this shift swap you'll have to click the shift and then "Accept swap"
How to request a shift swap in the browser
The procedure of swapping shifts that overlap within the browser version is fairly similar to that of the Smartplan app.
We will take the employee Alex as an example. He would like to swap his shift with Hannah on August 1st.
First, he opens the respective rota and clicks on the shift, that he wants to give to Hannah. The day overview opens, where he can now choose the option "Hand over shift":
He is now being warned, that Hannah has a conflicting shift, as she is already working from 5pm - 10pm that day:
After choosing her either way, he can now tick off the box that says, that he would like to swap shifts with Hannah instead:
Now Alex just has to wait for Hannah to approve the swap and possibly an administrator (depends on the settings). On his "Me" page, he can always keep track on who is still needing to approve the shift swap:
As soon as all involved parties have accepted the shift swap, the changes will become visible in the rota.
How to accept a shift swap in the browser
It is only possible to swap two shifts that are placed in the same time span by doing what's stated above. Thus, it is not possible to make a shift swap by requesting another employee's shift.
If your colleague (in this case Alex) has started the shift swap, all you have to do is approve it. This will be shown on your personal "Me" page:
To accept this shift swap you simply have to click on "Accept swap". It might be needed for an admin to approve the shift swap before the changes is being executed in the rota.