The Availability Management page gives you a clear view of when each team member is available to work. Set recurring weekly patterns, add one-time exceptions for special circumstances, and use this information to build smarter schedules.

![Availability Overview](/images/support/articles/schedule_availability_overview.png)

*The Availability Management page showing all employees with their weekly availability grid.*

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## Getting There

Navigate to **Scheduling** > **Availability** from the admin sidebar, or use the side navigation panel on any scheduling page and click **Availability**.

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## Interface Layout

| Area | Purpose |
|------|---------|
| **Filters** | Filter by position or search by employee name |
| **Availability Grid** | Table showing each employee's availability for every day of the week |
| **Legend** | Color codes: Available (green), Unavailable (red), Preferred (blue) |
| **Side Navigation** | Quick links to other scheduling pages + Quick Actions |

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## Understanding the Grid

The main table lists every active employee with columns for each day of the week (Sun–Sat):

| Symbol | Meaning |
|--------|---------|
| Green block | Available — employee can work during these hours |
| Red block | Unavailable — employee cannot work |
| Blue block | Preferred — employee prefers to work these hours |
| `-` (dash) | No availability set — treat as fully available by default |

Each cell shows the time range when set (e.g., "9a–5p"), or a dash if no availability has been configured.

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## Filtering Employees

### By Position

Use the `Filter by Position` dropdown to show only employees with a specific role:

- All Positions (default)
- Owner
- General Manager
- Store Manager
- Shift Lead
- Buyer
- Sales Associate

### By Name

Type in the `Search Employee` field to quickly find a specific team member.

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## Editing Availability

### Expanding an Employee Row

Click the expand arrow on any employee row to see their full availability detail and edit controls.

### Setting Recurring Availability

1. Click the **edit** button on an employee's row
2. For each day of the week, set:
   - **Available** with start and end times
   - **Unavailable** (blocked for the entire day)
   - **Preferred** with start and end times (indicates preference, not a hard constraint)
3. Click `Save` to apply the recurring pattern

> **Tip:** Recurring availability repeats every week automatically. You only need to set it once.

### Adding Exceptions

Exceptions are one-time overrides for specific dates (e.g., a doctor's appointment, a vacation day, or extra availability for a special event).

1. Click the edit button on an employee's row
2. Navigate to the **Exceptions** section
3. Click `Add Exception`
4. Select the date
5. Set the availability for that date (available with times, or unavailable)
6. Add an optional note
7. Click `Save`

> **Tip:** Exceptions always take priority over recurring patterns. If an employee is normally available on Mondays but has an exception for a specific Monday, the exception wins.

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## Manager-Initiated Time Off

Use the **Quick Actions** section in the side panel to create time-off directly:

1. Click `Create Time-Off`
2. Select the employee
3. Choose the dates and time-off type (bereavement, jury duty, etc.)
4. Add notes if needed
5. Submit

This creates a time-off entry without requiring the employee to submit a request — useful for manager-initiated leave.

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## Using Availability in the Schedule

Availability data integrates directly with the Schedule Calendar:

- **Overlay**: Enable the **Availability** overlay on the calendar to see availability patterns while scheduling
- **Conflict warnings**: The system warns you when scheduling an employee outside their available hours
- **AI scheduling**: The AI schedule generator uses availability data to create conflict-free schedules

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## Understanding Availability Types

### Recurring Availability

Weekly patterns that repeat every week. Examples:
- "Available Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm"
- "Unavailable on Sundays"
- "Preferred hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 10am–6pm"

### Exceptions

Date-specific overrides. Examples:
- "Unavailable March 15 (doctor's appointment)"
- "Available Saturday March 22 (covering for a coworker)"
- "Unavailable March 25–28 (spring break)"

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## Best Practices

- **Encourage employees to keep availability current** — Outdated availability leads to scheduling conflicts
- **Use the mobile app** — Employees can update their own availability from the BuyerKiosk Team app
- **Review before scheduling** — Always check the Availability overlay before building next week's schedule
- **Use exceptions for temporary changes** — Don't modify recurring patterns for one-off situations

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## Related Articles

- [Schedule Calendar](/support/articles/schedule-calendar)
- [Approval Queue](/support/articles/approval-queue)
- [Scheduling Settings](/support/articles/scheduling-settings)
- [Audit History](/support/articles/audit-history)