Swap or hand over a shift
Three different asks, and the schedule itself is what changes at the end of all of them — not a message somebody has to remember.
- Who this is for
- Anybody on a roster, about a shift that has been published.
Step by step
Offer a shift you cannot work
On the shift, ask to drop it. It stays yours until somebody takes it, so nothing is uncovered while it waits.
Take one somebody offered
The board of shifts your colleagues are trying to give up shows the ones you are eligible for, and you can take one from there.
Trade two shifts
Ask to swap offers your shift against another one in the week. The colleague on the other end accepts or declines before anybody else is involved.
Wait for the answer
Your requests are listed with their state: waiting on a colleague, waiting on a manager, or done. You can withdraw one that has not been settled.
Who has to agree
That is your workplace's setting, and there are three of them. A handover may need a manager, or the two of you may settle it yourselves; a trade always needs the colleague first. A workplace may also have giving up and trading switched off altogether, and then there is nothing on your screen to offer.
When it goes through
The schedule is what changes, and everybody involved is told. The week your team is reading is the week that is true, which is the whole reason for doing it here rather than in a thread.