Shift activities and layers
Shift configuration is the process of defining the activities that are included in a shift when that shift is created in the schedule. These activities specify the start and end times of work, breaks, and on-call periods.
MVS stores and displays shifts in a layered representation, where the activities for work,
breaks, and on-call comprise separate shift layers. Activities in one shift layer may overlap
activities in other layers. For example, consider a shift from 9:00AM to 5:00PM with a break
from 12:00PM to 12:30PM. This shift has two layers:
- Work 9:00AM to 5:00PM
- Break 12:00PM to 12:30PM
These rules must be followed when creating or updating the definition of a
shift:
- A shift must have at least one work or on-call activity, but can include a combination of activities from all three layers.
- A shift cannot have any gaps between the start time and end time of the shift where there are no work or on-call activities.
- Multiple activities from the same layer can be added to a shift, as long as they do not overlap. For example, a shift can have multiple work activities that are performed by employees at different times of the day.
- Break activities must fully overlap work activities. Breaks cannot be added outside work time or during times that only have on-call activities.
- On-call activities can overlap work activities.