Glossary

Words

Alias

A short code for a person, like N-09. The AI and the planner only ever see aliases. In ID mode, it is all eTime knows.

API key

A key that lets your own scripts and AI tools use eTime as you, with your role. Read keys only look; Read and write keys can also change shifts. Made under Account → API keys. See Account and sign-in.

Call-out

Offering an open shift to everyone who can legally take it, all at once. You pick from the people who say yes.

Company rule

A rule you add on top of the law, like 12 hours rest between shifts. It can only make things stricter.

Coverage

Whether every place on every shift is filled. The bottom row of the grid.

Draft

A roster that has never been published.

Extra place

One more place on a shift than it plans for. eTime adds one when you put someone on a shift that has no open place for their role. Undo takes it off. See Add or replace someone.

Fatigue score

A number from 0 to 100 for how heavy a period is: runs of nights, short turnarounds, long weeks and long runs of days. Legal, but heavy.

Generate

Let eTime fill the roster for the whole period. Everything it fills is legal.

Hard rule

A Must rule. Never broken. A roster that breaks one can't be published.

Health score

A number from 0 to 100 for how sustainable a period is for one person, from rest, hours and rules.

ID mode

A way to run a workplace where real names never reach eTime: everyone is an alias. Chosen at setup. The menu also has an ID mode switch that only hides names on screen.

Kiosk

A shared tablet at work where staff clock in by scanning a code, or with a PIN.

Law pack

The working-time rules of a country's law, built into eTime: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and the United Kingdom.

Must cover

A place on a shift that must never be left open, like the nurse with medication on the night shift. Shown with a red dashed border while open.

Offer

A shift sent to staff who can take it. They answer Yes, I can or No thanks.

Open shift

A place on a shift that nobody is on yet.

Period

The stretch of time one roster covers, like four weeks. The next period has the same length.

Publish

Send the roster to the team. Each publish keeps a version.

Role

The kind of work someone does, like Nurse. Shifts say how many of each role they need. Not to be confused with a member's role in eTime, like owner or viewer: see Roles and access.

Rotation

A pattern of shifts that repeats every few weeks for the people who follow it.

Shift type

A kind of shift a unit runs, like Day 07–15: its times, break, days and how many of each role it needs.

Site

A place, like a building. It has one or more units.

Slot

One place on a shift for one person of a role. A shift that needs two nurses has two slots.

Soft rule

A Try to rule. Kept when possible; a soft warning shows when it isn't.

Soft warning

An amber dot on a shift: a Try to rule isn't kept. You can still publish.

Swap

Two people trade shifts, or one gives a shift away. Every swap eTime offers is legal.

Unit

A team with its own roster, like Ward 3B. It belongs to a site.

Version

A snapshot of the roster, kept each time it is published. Compare or restore versions from the ⋯ menu.

What if

On the roster: work on a copy, try moves and swaps by hand, and see how rule breaks, open shifts and cost would change. Nothing is saved until you apply the changes. See What if: try changes first.

What if scenarios

On Insights: try bigger changes, like hiring someone or closing on Sundays. eTime plans the roster again for each and compares them. See Insights.