How do I create a special or one-time-only shift?
Special or one-time-only shifts can be built onto a schedule once it has been created.
To get started, select the day we want this shift to fall on by clicking on the calendar on the left, and then click the "New Shift..." button.
This allows us to build a non-recurring shift, directly onto that day and at a time of our choosing. We can specify the required number of volunteers needed for each job just like we would do when building a shift from the main "Recurring Shifts" pane.
To ensure that the shift is non-recurring, we'll need to set the "Repeats:" section to "Never: Just takes place on [date]". This section is what tells VSP how to schedule that particular shift. By setting "Repeats:" to "Never," we are telling VSP to make it a one-time-only shift.
What volunteers will see
The way that this one-time-only shift will be scheduled by VSP - and whether or not volunteers can see this shift - is dictated by our "Scheduler Settings".
To view and edit the scheduler settings, click on the "Schedule" menu at the top of an open schedule window, and choose "Scheduler Settings...". The last section in this dialog is what specifies how these one-time-only shifts get scheduled. We can choose from two options:
"Schedule any volunteer for any non-regular shift (regardless of his or her shift preferences)"
or
"Schedule only volunteers for a non-regular shift who have the shift (or "[Any special shift]") explicitly declared as one of their recurring shift preferences"
If we choose the first option, all volunteers will be able to see the unfilled positions for this shift in the Open Positions tab of the mobile app; the second option will make the shift invisible to volunteers unless they have this shift (or "[Any special shift]") explicitly listed as a preference.
