Tanda's Shift Replacement feature reduces the time it takes to find a replacement when an employee is unable to work their shift.
How it works
The shift replacement feature allows employees to request a replacement for their shift. When an employee requests a replacement, managers are given the option to:
Decline the request, or;
Offer the shift to some staff, or,
Offer the shift to all suitable employees
Managers are also able to initiate a shift replacement on an employee's behalf.
Turning on the shift replacement feature
The shift replacement feature is optional, by default it is turned off. To turn on the shift replacement feature, follow the below steps:
Log in to Tanda in a web browser at my.tanda.co
Navigate to Settings > Rosters > Enable shift replacements
Select enable shift replacements
(optional) if you would like managers to approve shift replacement requests, select shift replacements require manager approval
Requesting a shift replacement
Through the employee's roster, they can select the shift they are unable to work, followed by the 'Request a replacement' button. This will send a request to the manager to authorise the shift replacement.
Staff will be prompted to provide a reason for the replacement request, and will be given an estimated wage loss for losing the shift.
Request a replacement on an employee's behalf
Managers can initiate a shift replacement on behalf of an employee by selecting the team member's shift through the Action button > View Schedule tile and finding the relevant shift on the Team Schedule tab. Once the shift has been selected, select the green 'Request replacement' button.
Managers have the choice to offer the shift to all available team members or specific team members. However, if an employee (or manager on an employee's behalf) requests a shift replacement within 3 days of the scheduled start time, it will be offered to all eligible staff by default.
Offering shifts to certain staff
Shift replacements can be managed through the Action Menu > Manage shift swaps tile.
If the manager chooses 'Offer to certain staff', they'll see an overview of cost and roster variances against each option. Employees that are considered a 'Good Fit' will appear at the top of the offer screen, while others will appear as 'Other Available Staff'. Employees that would breach set roster validations if they picked up the shift will not appear as options.
When a request for a replacement is made, the shift will be marked as 'cover pending' on the employee's shift, and potential replacements will be notified of shifts to pick up under the through the Action Menu > Pick up shifts tile.
Staff who have been specifically offered a shift will be given the option to 'Claim shift'. Specifically offered shifts will be offered to the first team member who offers to work the shift, and the schedule will be updated accordingly.
Offering shifts to all eligible staff
If 'Offer to all eligible staff' is selected, all staff that can work in the team and do not breach roster validation settings will be notified of a shift to pick up, regardless of wage cost variances.
Eligible staff can 'Offer to cover' the shift through the Action Menu > Pick up shifts tile. When reviewing the offers, they will appear as either 'Good Fits' or 'Other Applicants' Manager approval is required for all offers to cover and can be actioned through the Action Menu > Manage shift swaps tile. Once confirmed, the schedule will be updated for the relevant employees.
FAQs and troubleshooting
Can employees swap shifts outside their team?
Employees can only swap within teams they have been assigned to.
What is a good fit?
A good fit is someone who is:
available,
works in the same team,
and will cost the same (or less)
Can employees find their own replacement?
No. Our feature has not been designed for employees to find their own replacement. This is deliberate to provide managers more control and oversight over costs.
Can employees trade shifts with each other?
No. Our cover request system is designed to minimise the amount of requests and roster changes. Shift ‘trades’ can be actioned by managers by editing the roster.
Why am I not receiving notifications?
To receive notifications you need to be a Team Manager in your employee settings, and be assigned to the relevant teams. Check that you haven’t turned notifications off for the Tanda App.
If a Team Manager hasn't logged into or used the app in the last 14 days, they will receive email notifications of shift replacement requests instead of app push notifications.
What if I don’t want my staff to access this feature?
You can turn the feature off in settings if you prefer to manually manage swaps between your staff.