Block employee unavailability during blackout periods

Block employee unavailability during blackout periods

Available for the following plans: Lite, Plus, Unlimited HR, Essentials, Engage, Elite, Unlimited HR+Payroll
Available for the following HR Classic plans: Standard, Premium, Platinum
Available for the following user access level: Admin

Blackout periods are essential tools for maintaining roster coverage during high-demand business cycles like holiday seasons or the end of the financial year. While these periods traditionally restricted leave requests, you can now also prevent employees from submitting unavailability.

By blocking unavailability submissions, you ensure that staffing gaps do not occur during critical times when you need your full team present. This feature provides admins with the flexibility to enforce strict attendance rules while allowing managers to override warnings where necessary.

This article shows you how to manage the following:

• Set up unavailability blocking
• Identify restricted periods
• Manage manager overrides
• Further information

Block unavailability submissions

Enable unavailability blocking on a blackout period

1. Click the Settings menu.
2. Under Time & Attendance, click Blackout Period.
3. Click the + Blackout Period button or select an existing period to edit.
4. Complete the period name and date range fields.
5. Toggle the Block unavailability submissions switch to on.

Helpful Hint

You can enable this option as a standalone action. This means you can create a blackout period that only blocks unavailability without needing to select any leave categories.

6. Click the Save button.

Important

If you enable unavailability blocking on a period where employees already have unavailability scheduled, the platform will display a warning message. This notification tells you how many conflicting entries exist so you can review and take action if necessary.

Identify restricted periods

View active unavailability restrictions

You can audit your restrictions at a glance without opening individual periods.

1. Click the Settings menu.
2. Under Time & Attendance, click Blackout Period.
3. Review the blackout period list:
   • Periods with unavailability blocking enabled show a Blocked badge.
   • Periods without this restriction show Not restricted.

Manage manager overrides

Submit unavailability as a manager during a blackout

While employees are blocked from self-submitting, managers and roster managers retain the ability to submit unavailability on an employee's behalf when genuinely necessary.

1. Open the Add Unavailability form for an employee in the EH Work app or the web roster.
2. Select dates that overlap with a blocking blackout period.
3. Review the amber informational warning banner that appears. This banner displays the period name and date range to ensure you make an informed decision.
4. Click the Save button. No additional confirmation step or "Proceed anyway" button is required to submit the request.

Further information

What happens when an employee tries to submit unavailability?

When an employee selects dates within a restricted blackout period in the EH Work app or roster, an error banner appears automatically. This message includes the name and date range of the blackout period. The Save button is disabled until the dates are changed to fall outside the restricted window.

Can employees edit existing unavailability into a blackout period?

No. If an employee tries to edit an existing unavailability entry to dates that fall within a blackout period, the same restrictions apply. They will see the error message and be unable to save their changes until they select dates outside the blackout window.

What do roster managers see in the web roster?

When a roster manager sets unavailability for an employee directly in the web roster, an amber inline warning appears below the date fields if the dates fall within a blocking blackout period. This warning is informational only; the Save button remains enabled, and no additional confirmation is required to proceed.