Two kinds of availability

Keep these separate, because they change on different timescales:

  • Regular availability: the days and hours someone can usually work. “Weekdays 6 AM to 2 PM, no Wednesdays.” Changes a few times a year, often with a class schedule or a second job.
  • Specific dates off: one-off days someone can't work, like a wedding, an exam or a flight. Changes every week.

Collecting it

  1. Ask every person for their regular availability in the same format: each day, and the earliest start and latest finish.
  2. Ask how many hours they want per week as well as when they're free.
  3. Set a cut-off for dates off: for example, requests for next week are due by Wednesday.
  4. Keep it all in one place that you check every time you schedule.

Keeping it current

Availability goes stale when updating it is harder than texting you. The fix is to let each person update their own, somewhere they can reach from their phone, and to remind the team when terms or seasons change. If you keep it yourself, ask everyone to confirm theirs once a month.

Using it while you schedule

Check availability before you place each person, not after the schedule is done. When you have to schedule someone outside their availability, ask first rather than posting it and hoping. A final pass comparing every shift against availability catches the ones you missed; see how to make an employee schedule for where it fits.