PeopleMuster

Employee availability form

An employee availability form collects, on one page, when a person can and can't work: a time range for each day of the week, the shifts they prefer, the most hours they want, and dates they already know they'll be away. Collect it before you build a schedule, and the first draft needs far fewer swaps.

Hand it to every new starter before their first rota, and to the whole team whenever shifts are reorganised. Ask for a fresh one when someone's circumstances change: a new course, new childcare, a second job. The form records availability; the schedule you publish afterwards is what commits anyone to a shift.

EMPLOYEE AVAILABILITY FORM

1. ABOUT YOU
Name: [EMPLOYEE NAME]
Role and team: [ROLE AND TEAM]
Contact number: [PHONE NUMBER]
This availability applies from: [EFFECTIVE DATE]
It is: Ongoing / Temporary, until [END DATE]

2. WHEN YOU CAN WORK
Day | Available? | From | To | Notes
Monday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Tuesday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Wednesday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Thursday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Friday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Saturday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]
Sunday | Yes / No | [FROM TIME] | [TO TIME] | [DAY NOTE]

3. PREFERENCES AND LIMITS
Shifts I prefer, in order: 1. [SHIFT] 2. [SHIFT] 3. [SHIFT]
Most hours I want per week: [MAX HOURS]
Most days I want per week: [MAX DAYS]
I can cover at short notice: Yes / No / Sometimes

4. DATES I ALREADY KNOW I CAN'T WORK
Date or dates | Reason (optional)
[DATES AWAY] | [REASON]
[DATES AWAY] | [REASON]

Employee signature: ____________  Date: [SIGN DATE]

5. FOR THE MANAGER
Received on: [RECEIVED DATE]
Accepted as written / Accepted with changes / Discussed, see note
Note to employee: [MANAGER NOTE]
Manager: [MANAGER NAME]  Signature: ____________

What to put in each blank

[EFFECTIVE DATE]
Write the first date the availability applies. Schedules already published before it stay as they are.
[FROM TIME]
Give the earliest start on a 24-hour clock. 'From 12:00' is more useful than 'afternoons'.
[TO TIME]
Give the latest finish you can do, including travel home if that's the real limit.
[SHIFT]
Name shifts the way the schedule names them, such as Morning or Evening, so the preference maps straight onto a shift.
[MAX HOURS]
State the most hours a week you want to work. Leave it blank to accept the contract's normal hours.
[DATES AWAY]
List exam days, appointments or trips you already know about. Booking them as leave is still a separate request.
[MANAGER NOTE]
Say what was accepted and anything that couldn't be, in plain words, so there's no surprise on the first schedule.

Before you send it

  • Collect every form before you draft the schedule. A rota drafted first and checked against availability afterwards gets rebuilt twice.
  • Keep the latest form per person and file the older ones. When two forms disagree, the effective date decides which one counts.
  • Reply in section 5 within a few days. A form that vanishes into a drawer teaches people to stop filling it in.
  • Treat availability as input, not a promise either way. Say so when you hand the form out, and the conversation after the schedule goes out is much shorter.

Once availability is matched to a shift, PeopleMuster assigns that shift to the person from a start date, keeps it Ongoing until you change it, and keeps every earlier assignment on record.

Questions people ask about this letter

What should an employee availability form include?

The days and hours someone can work, their preferred shifts, the most hours and days they want each week, and known dates away. Add an effective date and a manager reply. Those seven items cover what a scheduler needs.

How often should staff update their availability?

Whenever their circumstances change, and at least once or twice a year otherwise. A form that's more than six months old usually describes a life the person no longer has.

Does submitting availability guarantee a schedule?

No, and the form should say so. It tells the scheduler what works for the person. The published schedule is what assigns shifts, and a manager may still need to ask for flexibility when cover is short.

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