WFM UK: Scheduling 2023: Creating Shifts & Confirming Time & Attendance – Fourth & HotSchedules Customer Success Portal

A video guide for this article can be accessed here.

Shift Management

In the 2023 Scheduling version, the shift creation box has been adapted to support tablet use. The same fields as when using on a desktop/laptop are available as per the setup of the portal. Certain elements are collapsed by default and only displayed if and when required. This relates to the break input fields and shift notes sections.

Creating Shifts

To create a shift, select/tap the empty space (with the + icon)
Enter a Start and End Time
If an employee has more than one job role, use the Role drop-down to select it
Once the Start/End Times have been entered, select Save

Fig.1 - Creating Shifts - 2023 Version

To remove or edit the shift, select it and make the necessary changes
To create split shifts, repeat this process selecting the space beneath the shift already entered.
If there are more than two records (records are working shifts, Holiday, Absence, and Unavailability) for a single day for an employee, a button called and x more… will display - use this to see all shifts for that day

Fig.2 - More than 2 records per day - 2023 Version

Please note: Start and End Times cannot overlap

If an employee is multiple-employed through the HR module, the relevant job role for each of their shifts will be available in the drop-down next to the shift times. Hours for employees already scheduled at another location or department will be greyed out.

External Shifts & Non-Working Shifts

New Functionality - External Shift Location Icon

The displaying of external shifts and non-working shifts functionality has been preserved but is now presented in a new layout and view. To access more information about the external shift, simply hover over or tap on the shift with the location icon.

Fig.4 - External Shifts & Non Working Shifts - Classic Version

Fig.5 - External Shifts & Non Working Shifts - 2023 Version

Schedule Settings

Shifts can be dragged and dropped to employees, with the default action being 'copy'.

Select an existing shift for any employee, and drag it to another employee

The shift start and end time and break records are copied and the shift is created for the employee in the job role which they are available to work on in that department.

To change the option to Move use the switch at the top of the schedule page
In 'move' mode, select an existing shift for an employee and move this to any other employee

The shift is moved from employee X to employee Y. The start and end times and break records are copied and the shift is created for the employee in the job role which they are available to work on in that department.

Fig.6 - Shift Settings Copy / Move - Classic Version

Fig.7 - Shift Settings Copy/Move - 2023 Version

Shift Notes

New Functionality - Shift Note Icon

To see a tooltip with any shift notes, select the notes icon from within a shift - see

Fig.8 - Shift Notes - Classic Version

Fig.9 - Shift Note Icon - 2023 Version

Time and Attendance

The Time and Attendance functionality has been preserved, but it is now presented in a new layout and view.

Fig.10 - Time & Attendance - Classic Version

Fig.11 - Time & Attendance - 2023 Version

Staff - Employee name (can be arranged A-Z or Z-A using the arrow)
Forecast - The forecasted shift(s) for the employee. Forecast shifts must be scheduled at least 1 day before that shift date. Any shifts created on that day or after are not considered forecast shifts
Clock Times - Time and attendance data for the employee - Click clock times to view break records.
Actual - Actual shift times for the employee

Clock Event - Links with Fourth e-Clock. Click Camera icon to show the captured images.

Shift Type - Icon indicating if the shift is across business days
Actions - if there is a complete set of valid time and attendance data for the employee, confirm the clock times with the following options:

Confirm T&A – This will confirm the employee's T&A times as their Actual times. Selecting this will trigger a 5-second countdown timer to “undo” the action (see Fig.12). If an error is made modifying the employee’s shift time before the day is actualized, selecting Undo will re-open the T&A data.
Keep Scheduled - This will keep the employee's forecasted times as their Actual times. If there is partial data or no data then the employee’s forecasted schedule times can be kept.
Manually Enter Times – If there are invalid clock data shift times for the employee can be manually entered. A maximum of 2 shift records can be entered – see Fig.13. Shift notes and/or an additional shift can be added by selecting the relevant button.
Ignore these shifts - If there are clock times but no forecast shift, the clock data can be ignored.

Fig.12- Confirming Clock Times - 2023 Version

Fig.13 – Manually entering times - 2023 Version

When all actions are complete, close the pop-up with the X in the top-right corner.

The clock colours will be updated to reflect the status of Time & Attendance for that day.

Fig.14 – Clock Colour Statues - 2023 Version

Publishing Schedules

The Schedule Publish functionality has been preserved and will continue to auto-publish based on existing settings. A new warning icon will be displayed and when a user selects/taps the icon it will indicate when the schedule is going to be published - see Fig.17.

Fig.15 – Publish Button - Classic Version

Fig.16 – Publish Button, Auto Publish button and icon 2023 Version