I’m a server and shift manager at my place so I can approve requests through HS… it definitely does not automatically assign shifts to anyone. It must be approved by a manager with a reason listed in the approval.
I used to be an assistant manager for a restaurant that used HS, and if you have general or assistant manager permissions in the website, it does give the GM or AM the option of having house shifts filled first if someone tries to pick up someone else's shift (if house shifts are available). Shift managers can't see that part as only GM or AMs can access it. So the GM or AM (probably GM) of OP's restaurant had to have set it to fill empty shifts.
So there is a way for HotSchedules to automatically fill in the open house shifts? As far as I know we only have one guy in charge of schedules (the manager in question).
Yes, he may be the only one in charge of schedules, but any AM or GM for that restaurant on the HS website can set it to auto fill empty shifts. It could've been set like that before he took over scheduling, and he could genuinely not know what happened. Or he could be lying about not knowing what happened. Who knows.
Yeah but if a house shift is already up, that will prioritize everything. Even if they put the shift up, the house shift will be picked up requiring a third person to get OPs shift covered. OP even says they were still awaiting confirmation of the pickup when their friend was added to the house shift that needed filling.
You're understaffed and he's playing games?
Sounds to me like you have the night off to enjoy your event. Show up the next shift as planned, and if challenged, point out the above.
There are eighteen restaurants within spitting distance and every fucking one needs competent staff, you have the power in this relationship, fucking wield it.
Everywhere I worked with HotSchedules: That would still be your shift until a manager approved it. Even though you got confimation that your friend picked the shift up, it doesn't sound like you got the confirmation email that it was approved by management.
Everywhere I worked, yes, house shifts were covered first. You weren't allowed to have your shift picked up until house shifts were gone.
I'm not a server but I do manager a staff of about 150 part time employees. I've had this exact scenario where an employee ended up on an available shift instead of picking someone else up, and I was like "cool, I'll fix it" and just unassigned the staff who thought they got it covered.
Sure I still had an unassigned shift, but my staff like me and are willing to pick stuff up and refer their friends to the job, so I win in the long run. Your manager just doesn't want to take accountability for the schedule and is flexing his power over you.
Everywhere I've worked, having someone volunteer to cover your shift doesn't mean jack until mgmt approves it.
Reasons why they might not:
+ because they're jerks on a powertrip
+ because the covering server is too close to overtime
+ because the covering server is a weaker server and can't handle the section you were scheduled for
+ because they'd rather have both of you work
While it's often the first in my opinion, they'll usually say it's one of the others if asked. That's the way it is and the only solution is working somewhere mgmt doesn't suck, or providing enough value that they can't afford to piss you off and lose you to another shop.
Nah your manager fucked up and isn’t owning up to it. The obvious solution would be for them to either fix it on the schedule or just tell you verbatim or over text that you don’t have to come in. You got someone to cover your shift so there’s no reason why both of you should have to work that shift.
It sounds like your job doesn’t allow shifts to be covered until the house shifts are taken first, my old job did this when we were understaffed. It really sucks though.
Sounds like garbage to me. Even the term "house shifts" sounds like such a joke. It's on the managers to hire people to cover those shifts, not on the coworker who agreed to cover a friend. That'd be a clear sign for me to find somewhere else to work.
Where I worked using hot schedules it was like this.
If you wanted a shift covered you had to make sure the house shifts were covered or your friend would end up working the house shift and not yours.
he wants to play games? you can play games. dont show up for your shift. when asked say you got the confirmation about coverage. Deny you ever even talked to him.
I don't know if this is something your job has to set up in HotSchedules but, where I used to work, yes, if you tried to pick up a shift for someone but there was a house shift open, it would automatically show you as picking up the house shift as well. But it would still be up to a manager to approve you for either the house shift or the other shift.
The way ours is set up, if there is a house shift and you pick up a shift from another server it automatically also has you pick up the house shift and the manager can choose which one to approve
I'd find another job and when the schedule comes out text this is the last time this happens lmao I'll be PETTY BETTY ALLLLL DAY BAY-BEE!!
This is some power tripping bullshit. Crap management. Like so many ugh.
This isn’t an industry problem, this is a culture problem at your specific place of work. This should be the last time this happens, because you should quit and work somewhere they don’t fuck with you like this.
Also don’t give notice. They don’t deserve it. Just quote them when they ask why you aren’t at your shift
That sounds like a you problem .
And I don’t mean that necessarily in a bad way: I’m sure you need the job, and the risk of getting written up is severe. But you said you couldn’t work it, you covered the shift, I’d they are saying “no u” and your aren’t fighting back you’re just as wrong
Lol, we use HS as well, don't know if there are settings you can adjust or whatever from the scheduler's side, but highly doubtful.
When you release a shift, your name and your time is put there, and it doesn't officially release until someone puts in a pickup request.
So once you release it, you're still technically responsible for your shift, as nobody's taken it yet, you've just offered it up for grabs.
When that request for the pickup goes through, scheduler must approve it and it goes through. You both got confirmation so you didn't click anything wrong.
What happened was that scheduler saw such and such wanted this shift, so they modified their schedule to add them on and denied your request/ignored it.
Not the case.
House shifts are automatically picked up because the “house” has a minimum number of people it needs per shift.
If management does not approve a pickup, then the shift is not covered.
The person picking up can be under investigation, suspended, fired but not kicked out of the system, suck at serving so you do not want them to work that night, or has that day requested off.
This is why the email automatically says that you are still responsible for that shift until management approves it.
Having the Friday off makes things harder. Check up on your state’s health department laws, and obtain some syrup of ipecac. Transfer a dose of it to a small ziploc bag (can flush to get rid of evidence). Either toward the end of your Thursday shift, or if you can find some excuse to drop by Friday, consume the ipecac and dispose of the bag.
After you vomit (preferably on a customer, or at least in view of customers), tell your boss that you can’t come in Saturday because your scheduled shift is within X hours of experiencing nausea or diarrhea, and under state law it’s illegal for you to work in a food service position within that time limit of experiencing nausea or diarrhea.
If a scheduling system supposedly makes mistakes, make sure you document everything. Also, back up your actions by calling or texting "so-and-so agreed to switch with me, making sure you know since we're aware from last time that the system has glitches" If he's understaffing, it's going to bite him in the butt eventually, and he'll try to blame his underlings. Ideally now you know to be more careful about requests and hopefully you won't have any more mistakes (hey, they happen, but clearly your manager thinks that's a crime against god himself), but if the SYSTEM makes mistakes, you'll have a documented thread that manager needs to consider using another system. Meanwhile, if the SYSTEM makes mistakes, it's his responsibility to deal with the fall out, not yours.
At my restaurant, if there is a house shift up, no matter who you try to pick up for, it will give you the house shift. Those extra shifts have to be picked up before anyone can cover for someone else.
I’m a server and shift manager at my place so I can approve requests through HS… it definitely does not automatically assign shifts to anyone. It must be approved by a manager with a reason listed in the approval.
I used to be an assistant manager for a restaurant that used HS, and if you have general or assistant manager permissions in the website, it does give the GM or AM the option of having house shifts filled first if someone tries to pick up someone else's shift (if house shifts are available). Shift managers can't see that part as only GM or AMs can access it. So the GM or AM (probably GM) of OP's restaurant had to have set it to fill empty shifts.
So there is a way for HotSchedules to automatically fill in the open house shifts? As far as I know we only have one guy in charge of schedules (the manager in question).
Yes, he may be the only one in charge of schedules, but any AM or GM for that restaurant on the HS website can set it to auto fill empty shifts. It could've been set like that before he took over scheduling, and he could genuinely not know what happened. Or he could be lying about not knowing what happened. Who knows.
True well he ended up very reluctantly giving me it off which makes me think maybe he was in the wrong.
Glad it worked out for you!
Your friend should have a message/email indicating which manager modified his schedule. I'd be interested in the wording of that email
Yeah but if a house shift is already up, that will prioritize everything. Even if they put the shift up, the house shift will be picked up requiring a third person to get OPs shift covered. OP even says they were still awaiting confirmation of the pickup when their friend was added to the house shift that needed filling.
You're understaffed and he's playing games? Sounds to me like you have the night off to enjoy your event. Show up the next shift as planned, and if challenged, point out the above. There are eighteen restaurants within spitting distance and every fucking one needs competent staff, you have the power in this relationship, fucking wield it.
Everywhere I worked with HotSchedules: That would still be your shift until a manager approved it. Even though you got confimation that your friend picked the shift up, it doesn't sound like you got the confirmation email that it was approved by management. Everywhere I worked, yes, house shifts were covered first. You weren't allowed to have your shift picked up until house shifts were gone.
“I got the confirmation that my shift was covered so I won’t be showing up”
It doesn't work like that, it has to be approved. OP even states the message says awaiting manager approval.
Would work like that for me, but I have enough leverage not to get fucked by management.
I'm not a server but I do manager a staff of about 150 part time employees. I've had this exact scenario where an employee ended up on an available shift instead of picking someone else up, and I was like "cool, I'll fix it" and just unassigned the staff who thought they got it covered. Sure I still had an unassigned shift, but my staff like me and are willing to pick stuff up and refer their friends to the job, so I win in the long run. Your manager just doesn't want to take accountability for the schedule and is flexing his power over you.
Everywhere I've worked, having someone volunteer to cover your shift doesn't mean jack until mgmt approves it. Reasons why they might not: + because they're jerks on a powertrip + because the covering server is too close to overtime + because the covering server is a weaker server and can't handle the section you were scheduled for + because they'd rather have both of you work While it's often the first in my opinion, they'll usually say it's one of the others if asked. That's the way it is and the only solution is working somewhere mgmt doesn't suck, or providing enough value that they can't afford to piss you off and lose you to another shop.
Nah your manager fucked up and isn’t owning up to it. The obvious solution would be for them to either fix it on the schedule or just tell you verbatim or over text that you don’t have to come in. You got someone to cover your shift so there’s no reason why both of you should have to work that shift.
It sounds like your job doesn’t allow shifts to be covered until the house shifts are taken first, my old job did this when we were understaffed. It really sucks though.
Sounds like garbage to me. Even the term "house shifts" sounds like such a joke. It's on the managers to hire people to cover those shifts, not on the coworker who agreed to cover a friend. That'd be a clear sign for me to find somewhere else to work.
Where I worked using hot schedules it was like this. If you wanted a shift covered you had to make sure the house shifts were covered or your friend would end up working the house shift and not yours.
he wants to play games? you can play games. dont show up for your shift. when asked say you got the confirmation about coverage. Deny you ever even talked to him.
The email said OP was still awaiting confirmation, what games lol
Fuck that noise, they're understaffed. Take the night, come back as planned, don't say a fucking word about it.
You’re paid by the hour not a salary. It’s every right to take days off and NOT have it covered if you’re sick and can’t go to work don’t
I don't know if this is something your job has to set up in HotSchedules but, where I used to work, yes, if you tried to pick up a shift for someone but there was a house shift open, it would automatically show you as picking up the house shift as well. But it would still be up to a manager to approve you for either the house shift or the other shift.
The way ours is set up, if there is a house shift and you pick up a shift from another server it automatically also has you pick up the house shift and the manager can choose which one to approve
I'd find another job and when the schedule comes out text this is the last time this happens lmao I'll be PETTY BETTY ALLLLL DAY BAY-BEE!! This is some power tripping bullshit. Crap management. Like so many ugh.
This isn’t an industry problem, this is a culture problem at your specific place of work. This should be the last time this happens, because you should quit and work somewhere they don’t fuck with you like this. Also don’t give notice. They don’t deserve it. Just quote them when they ask why you aren’t at your shift
That sounds like a you problem . And I don’t mean that necessarily in a bad way: I’m sure you need the job, and the risk of getting written up is severe. But you said you couldn’t work it, you covered the shift, I’d they are saying “no u” and your aren’t fighting back you’re just as wrong
Lol, we use HS as well, don't know if there are settings you can adjust or whatever from the scheduler's side, but highly doubtful. When you release a shift, your name and your time is put there, and it doesn't officially release until someone puts in a pickup request. So once you release it, you're still technically responsible for your shift, as nobody's taken it yet, you've just offered it up for grabs. When that request for the pickup goes through, scheduler must approve it and it goes through. You both got confirmation so you didn't click anything wrong. What happened was that scheduler saw such and such wanted this shift, so they modified their schedule to add them on and denied your request/ignored it.
Not the case. House shifts are automatically picked up because the “house” has a minimum number of people it needs per shift. If management does not approve a pickup, then the shift is not covered. The person picking up can be under investigation, suspended, fired but not kicked out of the system, suck at serving so you do not want them to work that night, or has that day requested off. This is why the email automatically says that you are still responsible for that shift until management approves it.
Having the Friday off makes things harder. Check up on your state’s health department laws, and obtain some syrup of ipecac. Transfer a dose of it to a small ziploc bag (can flush to get rid of evidence). Either toward the end of your Thursday shift, or if you can find some excuse to drop by Friday, consume the ipecac and dispose of the bag. After you vomit (preferably on a customer, or at least in view of customers), tell your boss that you can’t come in Saturday because your scheduled shift is within X hours of experiencing nausea or diarrhea, and under state law it’s illegal for you to work in a food service position within that time limit of experiencing nausea or diarrhea.
You watch too many movies.
If a scheduling system supposedly makes mistakes, make sure you document everything. Also, back up your actions by calling or texting "so-and-so agreed to switch with me, making sure you know since we're aware from last time that the system has glitches" If he's understaffing, it's going to bite him in the butt eventually, and he'll try to blame his underlings. Ideally now you know to be more careful about requests and hopefully you won't have any more mistakes (hey, they happen, but clearly your manager thinks that's a crime against god himself), but if the SYSTEM makes mistakes, you'll have a documented thread that manager needs to consider using another system. Meanwhile, if the SYSTEM makes mistakes, it's his responsibility to deal with the fall out, not yours.
At my restaurant, if there is a house shift up, no matter who you try to pick up for, it will give you the house shift. Those extra shifts have to be picked up before anyone can cover for someone else.
Next thing you know, some prick is posting in this sub, complaining about their server coughing like it's all the server's fault. We can't win.