Shift Policies

Shift Policies allow you to create standard sets of rules which can be applied to your shifts and schedules. Create rules specifying the number of required hours, automatic meal break deductions, rounding, Base Pay Code assignments, etc.

Click on the main "Schedule" navigation tab at the top of the screen, and then on either the [SHIFT POLICIES] icon located under the Setup section of the screen, or the "Shift Policies" link located in the row of links directly below the main program navigation tabs.
The main "Shift Policy" screen appears. Click on the [CREATE SHIFT POLICY] icon located in the lower left-hand corner of the screen.
Enter a Name for this policy as you would like it to appear in the system.
If you would like to assign employee schedules to a default department level, click on the link in the Department field, and make the desired selection from the menu that appears.
The Before Start field allows you to enter the number of minutes before the scheduled starting time that punches will be recognized as punches for the upcoming shift.
Example: The schedule start time is 8 a.m. The "Before Start" setting is set to 15 minutes. An employee assigned to this shift policy clocks in at 7:50 a.m. This punch will be considered an early punch for the upcoming shift. If the same employee were to clock in at 7:40, the punch would be flagged with a "Not Scheduled" error code (depending on your Error Monitoring settings) due to the fact that it does not fall within the designated "Before Start" window.
The After Start field allows you to enter a grace period for employees clocking in late.
Example: The "After Start" field is set to 3 minutes. An employee assigned to this shift policy clocks in 2 minutes past their scheduled shift start time. No "In Late" punch error will be generated. If the same employee were to clock in 4 minutes after their scheduled start time, the punch would be flagged with an "In Late" error.
The Before End field allows you to enter a grace period for employees clocking out early.
Example: The "Before End" field is set to 5 minutes. An employee assigned to this shift policy clocks out 3 minutes before their scheduled shift end time. No "Out Early" error will be generated. If the same employee were to clock out 6 minutes before their scheduled stop time, the punch would be flagged with an "Out Early" error.
The After End field allows you to enter the number of minutes after the scheduled ending time that punches will be recognized as punches for the previous shift.
Example: The scheduled end time is 4 p.m. The "After End" setting is set to 30 minutes. An employee assigned to this shift policy clocks out at 4:15. This punch will be considered a late out punch for the previous shift. If the same employee were to clock out at 4:35, the punch would be flagged with a "Not Scheduled" error code.
Enter the number of Required Hours for schedules assigned to this policy. If employees working this schedule do not work the specified number of hours, the system will flag their punches for the day with an "Under Hours" error. This setting is used for Error Monitoring only and does not affect hours and earnings totals.
Enter the number of Absence Hours. This is the number of hours that employees will be given when approved absences are generated (such as Holiday, Vacation or Sick Time).
Enter the number of Max Hours. If employees working a shift assigned to this policy work more than the specified number of hours, their punches for the day will be flagged with an "Over Hours" error. This setting is used for Error Monitoring only and does not affect hours and earnings totals.
Select the Break Policies that you would like to attach to this policy by selecting each code from the Unselected box and clicking on the icon. The codes are moved to the Selected box.
The system allows you to select the Pay Code that hours for employees assigned to this shift will receive. Make the desired selection from the Base Pay Code drop-down menu.
Example: If employees working an overnight shift are to receive a higher rate of pay then for a daytime shift, the appropriate pay code would be selected.
Select the Premium Pay Codes that you would like to attach to this policy by selecting each code from the Unselected box and clicking on the icon. The codes are moved to the Selected box.
If you would like to assign this policy to a Rounding Policy, make the desired selection from the drop-down menu.
Note: Only "Shift Rounding Policies" will be available for selection in this field.
If you would like to assign this policy to Meal Policy, make the desired selection from the drop-down menu.
Note: Only "Meal Shift Policies" will be available for selection in this field.
If you would like to assign this policy to a Minimum Hours Policy, make the desired selection from the drop-down menu.
Note: Only "Shift Minimum Hours Policies" will be available for use in this field.
Click on the [SAVE] icon to save the Shift Policy.

Existing policies are displayed under the Active section of the main "Shift Policies" screen.

To edit a policy click on the link in the Name column.
Click on the link in the Company Default column to specify this policy that will be used by default when schedules are created. This default selection can be changed at the time of schedule creation. Only one policy at a time can be specified as the company default.
The "Copy" link allows you to make a duplicate of the shift policy. This can be useful when creating multiple policies with similar settings.
Click on the icon to inactivate a shift policy. The policy is moved to the Inactive section of the screen. Inactive policies are not used by the system, but are retained for later use. Click on the "Activate" link to re-activate an inactive policy.
To permanently delete an inactive policy, click on the icon located to the right of the desired policy in the Inactive section of the screen.

Shift Policies

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