Automatic shift scheduling: what the software does and what it doesn't
In short
- Automatic scheduling means the software drafts a roster from a given staffing need and set of rules. A person approves or changes it.
- The software can follow limits that can be calculated: regular working time of at most 112.5 h in three weeks (MaRa TES 7 § 1), at most 15 working days in the period (8 § 1), at least 11 h of rest between shifts unless otherwise agreed (7 § 4), and at most seven working days between days off (8 § 2).
- The software cannot give consent: overtime requires consent separately for each occasion (työaikalaki, the Working Hours Act, 872/2019, 17 § 1 mom.), and additional work requires consent unless it is agreed in the employment contract (17 § 2 mom.).
- The software cannot create employees. When there are too few people, shifts stay open, because the limits stay the same.
- The proposal is a draft. The roster must be made available at least a week before the period starts, and changing a published roster requires consent (MaRa TES 9 §).
What does automatic scheduling mean?
Automatic scheduling is a roster proposal made by software: it receives the staffing need, the contracts and the rules, and assigns shifts within them. The result is a draft, not a finished roster.
Here is where a limit bites: a restaurant is open seven days a week, and the kitchen needs two cooks every day. In a three-week period that is 42 shifts, and every one must land on someone without anyone's limit being exceeded. Done by hand, moving one shift also affects the rest periods in the neighbouring weeks. The law speaks of a työvuoroluettelo (work shift schedule) and the collective agreement of a työvuorolista (shift roster); here they mean the same thing. More on the topic: roster articles.
Which rules must the software follow?
You can give the software every limit that can be calculated: the period's hours, the number of working days, the rest periods and the length of a shift. MaRa TES 7 § and 8 § define them. A limit is either met or not, so checking suits a machine. What makes it hard is that there are many limits at once.
Four limits every proposal must meet
- 112,5 hregular working time in three weeksMaRa TES 7 § 1
- 15working days at most in a three-week periodMaRa TES 8 § 1
- 11 hrest between shifts, at least 8 h by agreementMaRa TES 7 § 4
- 7working days at most between days offMaRa TES 8 § 2
A shift must also be at least four and at most 10 hours, and the working time in a 24-hour day is at most 16 hours. A shift shorter than four hours is possible at the employee's request or for a justified reason, and one longer than 10 hours with the employee's consent; the 16-hour daily limit still applies (MaRa TES 7 § 3). For balancing the period's hours, see the article on the balancing system in a restaurant.
What can't the software decide?
The software can neither give nor assume consent, create employees, or know something it has not been told. When there are too few people, a shift stays open instead of quietly becoming an hour that breaks someone's limit. These three things stay with a person.
Working overtime requires that the employee gives consent to it separately for each occasion.
Additional work is separate: it may be assigned only with consent, unless it is agreed in the employment contract (työaikalaki 17 § 2 mom.). MaRa TES 18 § requires consent for both lisätyö (additional work) and ylityö (overtime); in the collective agreement, additional work is work done beyond the working time entered in the roster up to 120 hours, and overtime is work above 120 hours in a three-week period. Consent is information that a person must record, and software cannot infer it.
What does the calculation look like over three weeks?
Example: the same kitchen, two cooks every day for three weeks. There are 42 shifts, each 7.5 hours, 315 hours in total. Three cooks fit within the limits, two do not.
| Cooks | Shifts per cook | Hours per cook | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 14 | 105 | Stays under the 15 working day and 112.5 hour limits |
| 2 | at most 15 | at most 112.5 | 30 shifts covered, 12 left open |
One cook's period in the three-cook model: 14 working days, 3 V and 3 X
| Mo | Tu | We | Th | Fr | Sa | Su | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workday | Workday | Workday | Workday | Workday | Weekly rest day | Extra day off | 37,5 h |
| Workday | Workday | Workday | Workday | Workday | Extra day off | Weekly rest day | 37,5 h |
| Workday | Workday | Workday | Workday | Weekly rest day | Extra day off | 30 h |
- Workday
- Weekly rest day
- Extra day off
In the two-cook model the remaining 12 shifts need a third person. Extra hours for the same two do not help, because 15 working days is the maximum for the period (MaRa TES 8 § 1).
What is done with the proposal before publishing?
The proposal is reviewed, open shifts are filled and consents are recorded. Only after that is the proposal a roster. The collective agreement requires that the roster be made available at least a week before the three-week period starts, unless otherwise agreed at the workplace, and that it show start and end times and days off (MaRa TES 9 §).
- The staffing need is recorded: how many cooks and servers at opening, at lunch and at closing.
- The software drafts according to contracts, wishes and limits.
- Open shifts are reviewed, and consent is requested before additional work or overtime is assigned.
- The roster is made available within the deadline. A period always starts on a Monday.
- Changing a published roster requires the consent of both employee and employer (MaRa TES 9 §), see changing a published shift roster.
How Plana helps
Plana drafts a three-week roster from the saved staffing need: one click fills the period to your needs, and you decide which suggestions stay. Auto-schedule takes contracts, wishes and the TES into account, takes about two minutes at most, does not change shifts already made and publishes nothing. The TES check goes through every shift as you plan, and an illegal shift does not save. Additional work and overtime are planned only once the employee's consent has been recorded. Publishing is a separate step. The trial is free and starts without a demo or training: sign up. All features: Features.
- Staffing needs and opening hoursHow many cooks and servers at opening, lunch and closing. All planning starts here.
- Auto-scheduleOne click fills the period to your needs. You decide which suggestions stay.
- TES checkRest times, days in a row and period hours are checked as you plan. An illegal shift won't save.
Frequently asked questions
Sources
- Collective agreement for employees in tourism, restaurant and leisure services 2025–2028, 3. Working time, 7 § Regular working time and length of the working day (1–4)
- Collective agreement for employees in tourism, restaurant and leisure services 2025–2028, 3. Working time, 8 § Working week and days off
- Collective agreement for employees in tourism, restaurant and leisure services 2025–2028, 3. Working time, 9 § Shift roster
- Collective agreement for employees in tourism, restaurant and leisure services 2025–2028, 4. Pay, 18 § Additional work and overtime
- Working Hours Act (työaikalaki) 872/2019, 17 § Employee's consent