Skip to content
eTimeGuide

Try publish, must cover, kiosk or swap.

    eTime guide

    Your path through eTime

    Pick the journey that fits you. Each one walks you through eTime step by step, with a picture of what you will see on screen. Read it on your phone, or print it for the staff room.

    Read the docs
    1. Owners and adminsSet up your workplace and publish the first rosterYou run the workplace. In this journey you sign up, set eTime up for your team, invite people and publish a legal roster. Most people finish in an afternoon.10 steps · About an hourStart this journey →
    2. SchedulersThe weekly loopYou keep the roster running. This is the rhythm most schedulers settle into: a few minutes each morning, and a little more when a new period is due.7 steps · 10 minutes a dayStart this journey →
    3. StaffYour shifts, on your phoneYou work shifts. eTime shows when you work, tells you about extra shifts, and lets you clock in, ask for leave, swap and report sick in a few taps.9 steps · 10 minutes to get goingStart this journey →

    Owners and admins: Set up your workplace and publish the first roster

    You run the workplace. In this journey you sign up, set eTime up for your team, invite people and publish a legal roster. Most people finish in an afternoon.

    1. Start your workplace. Your account is made with your work email. There is no password to remember.
      • Go to etime.my/start.
      • Type Your name and Work email, then press Email me a code.
      • Type the 6-digit code from the email. It works once, for 10 minutes.
    2. Answer the setup questions. Five short steps give eTime what it needs: your workplace, the roles people work in, the shifts you run, your people and when the first roster starts.
      • Workplace: name it and the team you roster, pick your country, and say how the work runs (Around the clock, Set opening hours or Start empty).
      • Pick the kind of workplace, like Nursing home. eTime fills in typical roles and shifts for you to change.
      • Roles: check the job roles. Add pay if you have it.
      • Shifts: check times, days and how many of each role every shift needs. Tick Always covered for places that must never be empty.
      • People: add your team. You can paste names, one per line.
      • First roster: pick the Monday it starts and how long it is (4 weeks is the default). Press Create workplace.
    3. Check the rules. eTime checks every change against these rules. Make sure they match how you work before you build a roster.
      • Open Rules in the menu.
      • Read The law for your country.
      • Press Add a company rule for anything stricter you agreed, like 12 hours rest between shifts or no more than 3 nights in a row.
      • Choose who approves swaps in Shift swaps.
    4. Add pay to your roles. With pay, eTime shows what every roster costs and picks the cheapest one that follows the law. Without it, every hour counts the same.
      • Open Roles and click a role.
      • Under Pay, choose Per hour or Monthly salary and type the amount.
      • Press Save role. Change a person's own rate on People.
    5. Invite your team. Once people join, they see their shifts, get offers and clock in on their phone.
      • Open People, pick a person and go to Profile.
      • Under Invite to eTime, type their email and press Send invite. Or press Make invite and hand out the QR code or link yourself.
      • For managers, schedulers, payroll and admins, use Invite a manager at the top of the People screen.
    6. Generate the first roster. Generate fills the whole period in seconds, and everything it fills is legal.
      • Open Roster. The green card says Fill the roster.
      • Choose what matters most in the list, like Balanced or Fairest.
      • Press Generate roster.
    7. Check it and make it yours. You know your team. Look it over and move what you like; eTime checks every move.
      • Step through the weeks with the arrows.
      • Look for red rings (a rule is broken) and red dashed tiles (must-cover places still open).
      • Drag a shift to someone else, or select it and press Move or swap.
      • Made a mistake? Press Undo.
    8. Publish. Publishing sends the roster to your team. Each publish is kept as a version you can compare later.
      • When every must-cover place is filled and no rule is broken, the card says Publish the roster.
      • Press Publish.
      • Later changes show as Unpublished changes until you press Publish changes.
    9. Choose a plan. You start with 30 days of Pro and no card. Up to 10 people stay free for good.
      • Open Settings → Billing (owners only).
      • Check how many active people you have this month.
      • Press Choose … under a plan, or carry on with Free.
      • Invoices, your card and plan changes are under Manage billing.
    10. Connect your own tools (optional). Most workplaces skip this. If you use scripts or an AI assistant, an API key lets them use eTime as you.
      • Open Account, press Create a key under API keys, and copy the key.

    Schedulers: The weekly loop

    You keep the roster running. This is the rhythm most schedulers settle into: a few minutes each morning, and a little more when a new period is due.

    1. Check Today. Today gathers what needs you, most urgent first, so you don't have to hunt.
      • Open Today. Read the four numbers at the top.
      • Work down Needs you. Each line has its own button: Fill it, Pick, Approve, Review.
      • Glance at Today's shifts and Away today.
    2. Fill open shifts. eTime only suggests people who can legally take a shift, ranked by cost, fairness and wishes.
      • On the roster, select an open tile, or press Fill it on the status line.
      • In Fill vacancy, pick from Who can take it and press Confirm.
      • Or use the suggested fix bar: Apply takes the best idea, More ideas shows others.
      • To put anyone on a shift, press an empty day (a + shows), or + Add under a shift in the Shift types layout. Pick from the list.
    3. Handle sick reports and offers. When someone reports sick, their shifts are offered to colleagues who can legally take them. You only pick.
      • The status line tells you who is off sick and what needs covering.
      • Select the open shift and press Offer to all … who can take it. Everyone gets it at the same time.
      • When people say yes, Needs you shows it. Press Pick, then Pick … on the best yes.
    4. Approve swaps. Staff arrange swaps between themselves. eTime only offers legal ones, so you just say yes or no.
      • Swaps waiting for you are at the top of Needs you.
      • Read what changes and what it costs, then press Approve or Say no. Both people are told.
    5. Generate the next period. Two weeks before a period ends, eTime reminds you to plan the next one.
      • When the card says Plan the next period, press Start the next period. It copies the shifts with nobody on them.
      • Press Generate roster.
      • Check it: red rings, open must-cover places, and the hours column.
    6. Publish. Publishing sends the new roster to your team. People with shifts get a notification, if they have turned them on.
      • Press Publish, or Publish changes for later edits.
      • If the button is grey, a rule is broken: fix it first.
    7. Approve hours, check costs and export payroll. Pay is worked out from approved hours, with night, weekend and overtime pay.
      • On Time, press Approve … that match to approve every entry within 15 minutes of the plan. Look at the rest one by one.
      • On Costs, choose Worked to see pay from approved time.
      • Under Payroll export, choose your mapping and press Download.

    Staff: Your shifts, on your phone

    You work shifts. eTime shows when you work, tells you about extra shifts, and lets you clock in, ask for leave, swap and report sick in a few taps.

    1. Join with your invite. Your workplace makes the account for you. You never need a password.
      • Scan the QR code on your invite with your phone camera, or open the link. You can also type the code at etime.my/join.
      • Check your name and press Join as ….
      • Press Make a passkey. From now on you sign in with your face, fingerprint or phone PIN.
    2. Put eTime on your home screen. Then eTime opens like any app, and you hear about shift offers straight away.
      • Android: open the menu with Menu and press Install eTime.
      • iPhone: in Safari, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. Open eTime from there.
      • Go to Account → Notifications and press Turn on.
    3. See your shifts. Today shows your next shift and who you work with. The roster shows everyone.
      • Open Today for your next shift and your week.
      • Open Roster to see the whole team, week by week.
    4. Pick up extra shifts. When a shift opens up, it is offered to everyone who can legally take it. Your manager picks from the yeses.
      • A Shift offer card shows on Today. It says what the shift pays and your hours that week.
      • Press Yes, I can or No thanks. You can change your mind while the offer is open.
    5. Clock in and out. Your hours go to your manager for approval, and pay is worked out from them.
      • Open Time and press Clock in. Or scan the code on the kiosk at work.
      • When you leave, enter any unpaid break and press Clock out.
      • Something wrong? Press Fix on the entry and send it to your manager.
    6. Ask for leave. You see your balance before you ask, and your manager sees what your leave means for the roster.
      • Open Leave and press Ask for leave.
      • Choose the type and the days, then Send request.
      • Watch the status: Waiting, then Approved or Not approved.
    7. Swap a shift. eTime only shows swaps that keep everyone within the rules.
      • On the roster, select your shift and press Swap this shift.
      • Choose With a colleague and Ask …, or Give it away and Offer it.
      • You see the answer on Today. Your manager may need to approve it.
    8. Report sick. Two taps. No reason is asked or stored. Your shifts are offered to colleagues, and your manager is told.
      • On Today, press I'm sick.
      • Choose how long and press Report sick until ….
    9. Put your shifts in your own calendar. See work next to the rest of your life, and share it with family.
      • Open Calendar. Under Use it in other calendars, press Get a feed link.
      • Press Apple, Google or Outlook to add it.
      • Want family to see your shifts? Ask your manager for a link to just your shifts.