For most centers, working with blackouts via Blackout Times Management isn't an especially common task (as schedules are typically pretty static and set up initially through Starting Availability Management). To help with this, the examples below provide step-by-step instructions for a variety of scheduling situations that require a modifying blackouts. Before working through the examples, review the information on adding, modifying, and canceling blackouts as those instructions aren't repeated here.
If you are using the SLOT SCHEDULING ONLY option in Schedule Management, note that these examples continue to apply. The only difference is that, instead of starting and ending times, you'll see a slot number that aligns with the slot numbers displayed on your schedule and in Blackout Times Management.
A staff member wants to come in on a day or a time when they're not normally available...
This example assumes that:
To make this change, go to Blackout Times Management and then select on the full day blackout that covers all of Jake's available time on November 3. Next, edit the blackout to change the blackout's ending time to 10am (so that the blackout spans from 8am to 10am). Next, select the "future" option from the "repeating" drop-down and then select "save changes." Once you close the pop-up window, you'll see that Jake now appears available from 10am to 5pm on Fridays.
To make the 12pm to 5pm portion of Jake's shift unavailable (so that he's only available from 10am to 12pm), select on the white square that starts at 12pm. Then, set the ending time of the blackout to 5pm. Next, select the "Repeating Options" link to repeat the new blackout every "1 week on Fridays" through the end date of your schedule. Finally, select "create blackout." WCONLINE will then add the second blackout needed to cover Jake's Fridays, leaving only 10am to 12pm available.
A staff member needs to miss the entire day...
This example assumes that:
To make this change, first select all of Jessica's already scheduled appointments on January 11 and either cancel those appointments or move those appointments to another staff or resource.
Then, go to Blackout Times Management and then select the existing blackout that covers Jessica's time on January 11 from 8am to 10am. Next, edit the blackout to change the blackout's ending time to 5pm. (The blackout used to span from 8am to 10am, making Jessica available beginning at 10am. Now it spans from 8am to 5pm, making Jessica unavailable for the whole day.) Click "save changes." Once you close the blackout and return to the schedule, you'll see that Jessica no longer shows up on the schedule view on Monday, January 11, since Jessica is now unavailable that entire day. (If Jessica had a schedule change that made all Mondays unavailable, you would choose the "future" option from the "Repeating Blackout" drop-down before clicking to save.)
A staff member wants to make their shift longer...
This example assumes that:
To make this change, go to Blackout Times Management and then select Joan's existing 1pm to 3pm blackout on May 16. Then, edit the blackout to change the blackout's starting time to 2pm. Next, select the "future" option from the "repeating" dropdown and then select "save changes." Once saved, WCONLINE will adjust all of the current and future blackouts so that they run from 2pm to 3pm. This will cause the formerly covered 1pm-2pm slot to now be open on your schedule.
A staff member wants to make their shift shorter...
This example assumes that:
To make this change, go to Blackout Times Management and then select Joan's existing 1pm to 3pm blackout on May 16. Then, edit the blackout to change the blackout's starting time to 10am. Next, select the "future" option from the "repeating" dropdown and then select "save changes." Once saved, WCONLINE will adjust all of the current and future blackouts so that they run from 10am to 3pm. Since Joan is already blacked out from 8am to 10pm, this will blackout all remaining time except for the 3pm to 5pm slot.
You want to lengthen your schedule's open hours...
This example assumes that:
To make this change, go to Schedule Management and edit your schedule. Then, change the STARTING TIME to 5pm and the ENDING TIME to 8pm and save your changes. This will open your schedule until 8pm.
Since your staff and resources (here, only Jamie) didn't have blackouts from 5pm to 8pm, Jamie will immediately show as available from 5pm to 8pm. If you had other staff and resources, they would all immediately show as available from 5pm to 8pm. Therefore, the second step is to add and modify blackouts to account for the newly opened time.
To do this, go to Blackout Times Management and then select Jamie's existing 4pm to 5pm blackout on any Monday. Change the ending time to 8pm, select the "past and future" option from the "repeating" dropdown, and then select "save changes."
If you had other staff members, you would simply add new blackouts or edit existing blackouts to cover the newly available time and apply those changes to past and future (or to future only) as needed.
You want to shorten your schedule's open hours...
This example assumes that:
Since WCONLINE won't let you change your schedule's hours in a way that would cover existing blackouts and appointments, you'll first need to edit all of Jamie's existing blackouts so that they end at 3pm. To do so, first cancel all appointments with Jamie that occur after 3pm. Then, go to Blackout Times Management and then select Jamie's existing 4pm to 5pm blackout on any Monday. Edit the blackout and select the "past and future" option from the "repeating" dropdown, and then select "cancel blackout." This makes Jamie's time always open between 3pm and 5pm. If a staff or resource had a blackout extending through and past 3pm, you would edit that blackout to end at 3pm and also use the "past and future" option before saving. Next, go to Schedule Management and edit your schedule. Then, change the STARTING TIME from 5pm to 3pm and save your changes.
If you get a message that the change couldn't be made as it would cover existing blackouts and appointments, then you'll need to go back to Blackout Times Management and find and remove the remaining blackouts that extend past 3pm.
You want to have a special "finals week" or evening schedule...
For our recommendations about working with a special finals week schedule (or a schedule that is extremely different from your existing schedule), read our FAQ entry on this topic.
SECTION 1: Adding, Modifying, or Canceling Blackouts
SECTION 2: Scheduling Changes: Step-by-Step Examples