Overview
The Exclude setting is used to prevent selected staff members from working a specific shift.
Excluded staff members:
Are not assigned to the relevant shift during automatic scheduling.
Can continue to be assigned normally to other shifts.
This setting is useful for managing staff–shift incompatibilities, qualifications, availability restrictions, or other assignment limitations.
How to Access This Setting
To exclude staff from a shift at the department level:
Go to Department from the left menu.
Open the Shifts tab.
Click the edit icon next to the active shift you want to update.
Open the Exclude tab.
Select the staff members who should not work the shift.
Save the changes.
How the Exclude Setting Works
The staff members selected in the Exclude tab are removed from the eligible staff pool for that shift.
For example, if a staff member is excluded from the Night shift, they cannot be assigned to the Night shift but can still work other active shifts.
The department-level exclusion is used as the default when creating a new schedule.
Schedule-Specific Overrides
Exclusions can also be changed for a specific schedule:
While selecting and configuring shifts during schedule creation
From the schedule workspace after the schedule has been created
Changes made at the schedule level apply only to that schedule. They do not update the department-level exclusion settings.
Usage Scenarios
The Exclude setting can be used when:
A staff member should not work a particular shift.
A shift requires qualifications that the staff member does not have.
A staff member should not be assigned to night, long, or special shifts.
A staff member has a permanent incompatibility with a specific shift.
Impact on Scheduling
In the current scheduling model, shift exclusions are enforced as hard constraints.
The automatic scheduling algorithm does not assign an excluded staff member to the relevant shift. Exclusions must therefore be compatible with staffing requirements and the number of eligible staff members.
If too many staff members are excluded, Oplist may not have enough eligible staff to meet the shift requirements, and a schedule may not be generated.
Important Considerations
Excluding a staff member affects only the selected shift.
Department-level exclusions become the default for new schedules.
Schedule-specific changes do not modify department defaults.
Review exclusions together with staffing requirements and staff availability.
Ensure that enough eligible staff members remain available for the shift.