Set Availability
Availability is when a technician is meant to be working. Work is never planned outside it.
Who can do this: Location Managers, Org Admins and Account Owners.
Setting the weekly pattern
Open the technician
Set the shift start and end
The times they normally work.
Set which days they work
Tick the days. Leave days they do not work unticked rather than giving them nominal hours.
Save
The form will not accept a shift end that is earlier than the shift start.
Availability and operating hours
A technician’s availability sits inside your operating hours. If the shop closes at 18:00 and a technician’s shift runs to 18:30, the shop’s hours win — nothing is planned past close.
Set operating hours first, then availability within them.
Known absences
Holiday, training, a medical appointment: record it in advance rather than dealing with it on the morning.
Work is then never planned against that person on those days, and vehicles are placed correctly from the start rather than being shuffled at 08:00.
Enter the year’s booked holiday when it is approved, not when it starts. A week of holiday entered in advance costs nothing; the same week discovered on the Monday morning produces a day of unplaceable vehicles.
For an unplanned absence on the day, mark the technician absent instead.
Availability versus attendance
Two different things:
| Says | Set by | |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | When somebody is meant to be here | A manager, in advance |
| Attendance | Whether they are here | Clocking in, on the day |
If your workshop requires clock-in, availability alone is not enough — a technician who has not clocked in is not planned.
Part-time and shift patterns
| Pattern | How to set it |
|---|---|
| Part-time, fixed days | Tick only the days worked |
| Different hours on different days | Set the shift times that cover the working pattern |
| Alternating weeks | Set the pattern that applies, and record the off weeks as absences |
| Split shift | Set the outer span, and use break times for the gap if it applies to everyone |
Common questions
Somebody is coming in late today. Adjust their availability for that day. Work is then planned from the time they actually arrive.
Can a technician set their own availability? No. It is set by Location Managers and above.
Does availability affect their efficiency figures? No. Efficiency compares billable time against clocked-in time, so hours not worked do not count against anybody.
What if somebody regularly works past their shift? Do not plan on it. Set availability to the hours you can rely on; overtime is a decision made on the day, not an assumption built into every plan.
We work a rota that changes weekly. Update availability weekly. It is quicker than the alternative, which is a plan that assumes last week’s rota.