Cover Shifts Overview

Cover Shifts is a powerful add-on feature in TrackPath that helps managers quickly find available associates to cover open shifts — without needing to personally call, text, or email them one by one.

By setting up Cover Shifts, your team can save hours of manual coordination, fill shifts faster, and ensure the right associates are selected fairly and efficiently. Once enabled, TrackPath will automatically handle contacting associates, prioritizing them based on customizable rules, and (optionally) granting shifts automatically.

Important: Cover Shifts is an Add-On Feature

Before you can use Cover Shifts, it must be added to your account’s subscription. Once it’s added, you’ll be able to access Cover Shift Settings from your Account Settings page to configure how shifts are offered and granted.

If you don’t see the Cover Shifts option, contact your account administrator or TrackPath Support.

Key Benefits

• Save manager time: No more manual outreach — TrackPath contacts associates for you.
• Fill shifts faster: Associates receive notifications immediately and can quickly claim available shifts.
• Fair and consistent selection: Associates are prioritized using clear rules, reducing favoritism and manual errors.
• Customizable workflows: Choose between automatic or manual approvals based on your organization’s needs.

How It Works (Quick Summary)

When a manager needs to create a cover shift, they simply:

• Select a cost center, shift date/time, and the position they need to cover.
• (Optional) Add a reason for the cover shift, and notes.
• Once saved, TrackPath will start contacting associates automatically based on the priority rules you’ve configured at the account level.

Account-Level Settings for Cover Shifts

To make the most of Cover Shifts, you’ll want to configure a few key settings for your account. Here’s what you can customize:

1. Associate Groups and Priority

You can create Associate Groups based on different criteria, such as:

• Same cost center and same job title (highest priority)
• Any cost center, same job title
• Any cost center, qualified for this position

You can drag and drop these groups to control the order of priority. Associates in the highest-ranked group will be offered the shift first.

You can also add a “Manually select associates” fallback group if needed.

2. Shift Granting Mode

Decide whether shifts are:

• Granted Automatically — Associates are automatically selected based on seniority within the highest priority group.
• Granted Manually — Managers review and manually approve associates after they express interest.

Choosing automatic mode makes the system fully hands-off after initial setup.

3. Associate Priority Rules

Specify how associate priority is determined:

• Seniority / Hire Date (older hire dates get priority)
• Position Changed Date (when they were assigned to their current position)

This setting fine-tunes how TrackPath ranks associates inside each group.

4. Reply Timeframes

Set how much time associates have to respond to a shift offer before they lose their chance:

• For shifts starting within 72 hours, a short reply window (e.g., 20 minutes).
• For shifts starting more than 72 hours away, a longer reply window (e.g., 2 hours).

This ensures quick responses for urgent needs while allowing flexibility for future shifts.

5. Access-Level Settings

Control which user levels can create and manage cover shifts:

• Level 4 (Admin)
• Level 3 (Account Admin)
• Level 2 (Manager)

Only the user levels you select here will see the option to add cover shifts.

6. Notification Settings and Templates

Customize the messages sent to associates, including:

• Shift Offer — Invites associates to claim the shift.
• Shift Offer Reply Confirmation — Confirms their interest has been received.
• Shift Confirmation — Confirms when an associate has been granted the shift.

You can also decide whether to send a message to associates who weren’t selected, so they aren’t left wondering.

Next Steps

Once your account settings are configured, your managers can start creating Cover Shifts right away. Make sure to check out our Creating a Cover Shift guide to learn how to post your first shift!