Creating & editing shifts
Add a shift, set its position, staff, times and breaks, read the cost estimate, and edit or delete it.
A shift is one block of work for one position on one day. This guide covers adding a shift, filling in its details, reading the cost estimate, and editing or deleting it later.
Who this is for
Owners and managers using the Shiftly web platform to run your business.
Before you start
- You're an owner or a manager with access to the location you're rostering.
- Open Roster from the main navigation and pick the location at the top left.
- You'll need at least one position set up — see Positions & classifications.
Start a shift
There are a few ways to begin a new shift:
Open the shift form
Use Create new shift in the header, click an empty cell in the grid (the day and position you click pre-fill the form), hover an empty cell and use the + that appears, or use the + on an existing card to add another shift in the same cell.
The Create a shift form opens.
Fill in the shift
Choose the position
Pick the role under Which position are you filling? (required). Every shift needs a position. If the role doesn't exist yet, set one up first under Positions & classifications.
Choose the staff member (or leave it open)
Pick a person under For which staff member?. Each option shows their availability for the shift's time — Unavailable if they've marked themselves off, or Blocked if they're already on a shift that overlaps it. Approved leave isn't a badge here; it's checked when you save (see the callout below). Leave it set to Open to publish the shift for staff to claim (see Open shifts).
Set the date and times
Pick the date in Select the shift's date, and set Start time and End time (type times like 9am or 14:30). If the end time is earlier than the start, Shiftly treats the shift as overnight and rolls the end to the next day. New shifts pre-fill sensible default times for the location.
Optionally pick a Project to track this shift against a job or cost centre — see Projects. (The picker uses whatever you've named the feature.)
Adjust breaks, add notes, and check the cost
Once a position and staff member are set, any Break start time fields appear (each labelled with its length, e.g. Break 1 start time (30 min)) — adjust when a scheduled break begins. Breaks themselves come from the position's pay rules. Add anything the team should know in Notes for the shift (up to 400 characters).
The footer shows a live Shift breakdown cost estimate; open it for the Detailed cost breakdown (allowances, super contribution, and total). The * marks it as an estimate — confirm final pay in your payroll.
Save
Select Save Shift. The shift appears on the grid as a draft until you publish — see Publishing a roster.
If the person already has another shift that day, Shiftly warns you — This employee already has shifts on this day (it names the other location when it's a different one). Two non-overlapping shifts on the same day are fine (a split shift). But you can't save a shift whose time overlaps another one for that person at any of your locations — Shiftly blocks it with a message naming the clashing shift — Staff member is already assigned to a shift at <location> from <start> to <end>.
Approved leave is checked the same way, on save. A full-day leave blocks any shift that day; a part-day leave blocks only a shift whose time overlaps the leave's hours. If the shift clashes, Shiftly stops the save with Staff member is on <leave type> from <date range>. — so you can still roster a shift on a day someone has part-day leave, as long as it sits outside those hours.
Edit or delete a shift
Open the shift
Click an existing shift card to open it in Edit a shift mode. Change the position, staff, date, times, breaks or notes, then Save Shift. To remove it, use Delete Shift.
The only time you can't edit or delete a shift is while the assigned person is clocked in and working it. Shiftly stops you with "Staff member is currently working this shift, please wait for them to finish before making changes to the shift." Once they've clocked out — and for every draft, published, or already-finished shift — you can edit or delete it.
Move and assign by dragging
- Move a shift: drag a card to another day or position to move it. To copy instead of move, hold Alt while you drag — see Copying & repeating shifts.
- Assign someone: open the drag-and-drop tray and drag a person onto a cell. Shiftly checks before it commits:
- Dropping onto a filled shift asks Replace employee? → Replace.
- If the person is already over their weekly hours, Employee over ordinary hours asks you to confirm with Assign anyway.
- If they have an overlapping shift that day, the shift opens so you can sort out the clash.
- On a day someone has full-day approved leave, the cell shows Blocked and won't accept the drop.
- On a day someone has part-day leave, the cell isn't blocked — you can drop a shift, and it's only rejected on save if its time overlaps the leave's hours (see Availability & weather).
Related
Using the scheduler
Find your way around the roster grid.
Copying & repeating shifts
Copy, paste, repeat, and stack shifts to fill the week faster.
Publishing a roster
Send the schedule to your team once shifts are ready.
Open shifts
Leave a shift open for staff to claim.
Availability & weather
How availability and leave shape what you can roster.
Projects
Track a shift against a project.
Using the scheduler
Find your way around the weekly roster grid — switch views, move between weeks, filter, read shift statuses, and assign your team.
Copying & repeating shifts
Copy and paste a shift into another slot, repeat it across the week, duplicate it as you drag, stack a second shift in a cell, and create a timesheet from a shift.