Stop Texting "You Working Saturday?"
You publish the schedule Monday. By Thursday, you're texting people: "You working Saturday?" You need to know. You don't trust that they saw the schedule, remembered it, or didn't confuse it with last week.
You text twelve people. Eight respond "yes." Four don't respond at all. You don't know if they saw your text, if they're working, or if they forgot. You're left guessing, which means you're still worried about Saturday.
If you're still texting "you working Saturday?" after three weeks, it didn't help.
Why You Don't Trust the Schedule
People don't check it
You posted the schedule on the wall, in the group chat, or in a shared doc. Some people checked it Monday. Some haven't looked since. They don't know they're working Saturday. You can't assume they know.
Changes get missed
You adjusted the schedule Wednesday because someone called out. You told everyone in person and posted the update. But one person was off Wednesday. They're still following Monday's version. Now two people think they're working the same shift.
Verbal agreements fall apart
Two people agreed to swap Saturday. They told you, or they told each other, or they think they told someone. Nobody confirmed anything in writing. It's Saturday and there's one more person who might not show.
You need to plan ahead
If someone's not coming Saturday, you need to know by Thursday. Not Saturday at 5pm. Thursday gives you time to find coverage. Saturday gives you panic.
Why Texting Everyone Doesn't Work
Half the people don't respond
You text ten people "you working tomorrow?" Six respond. Four don't. You don't know if the four saw your message and ignored it, forgot to reply, or never got it. You're still uncertain.
It's late by the time you find out
You text Friday. Someone finally responds Saturday morning: "Can't make it, sorry." Now you're scrambling for same-day coverage. You needed to know this Thursday.
You waste time chasing responses
You're texting, waiting, texting again, calling, leaving voicemails, waiting for callbacks. An hour later you've confirmed seven people and still don't know about three. Tomorrow you'll do this again for next week.
How Shift Confirmation Actually Works
When you publish the schedule, employees see their shifts in the app on their phone. They tap "confirm" or "can't make it." You open the app and see a list: Sarah: confirmed. John: confirmed. Mike: not confirmed yet. Lisa: can't make it. Now you know who to contact. You text Mike. He confirms immediately. He just hadn't opened the app yet. Lisa said she can't work, so you find coverage now while you have time.
You know Thursday, not Saturday
Thursday afternoon, you check Saturday's confirmations. Three people confirmed. Two haven't responded yet. You text those two. One confirms right away. The other says they can't work, but it's Thursday. You have two days to find someone. You post in the group chat, call a couple people, get it covered. Without confirmation tracking, you find out Saturday when they don't show up.
You stop the "I didn't know" excuse
When someone confirms their shift, they've seen it. You both have a record of it. They can't later say: "I didn't see the schedule", "I thought I was off Saturday", "I thought someone else was working". They confirmed. You have proof. This doesn't make people more responsible. It makes miscommunication impossible.
When This Helps
Thursday before Saturday night service
You check confirmations. Saturday needs five servers. Three confirmed, two didn't. You text the two. One says they forgot to confirm. They're working. The other can't make it. You have two days to fix it.
Someone requests off next Friday
They request it in the app. You see it immediately, approve or deny. If you approve, that shift opens up and you can assign someone else. No digging through texts later trying to remember who asked for what.
End of the week
You're looking at who actually showed up vs who was scheduled. The app shows you. Mike confirmed but called out Saturday morning (sick, legitimate). Lisa never confirmed and didn't show (unreliable, you have data now). Sarah confirmed and worked (she's solid for future Saturdays).
Next time you build the schedule
You know who's reliable for weekend shifts because you have data on who confirms and shows up. You're not guessing based on memory. You have records.
What You're Actually Getting
You're not eliminating all no-shows — someone might confirm Thursday and still not show Saturday because life happens, and you can't prevent emergencies. But you eliminate the preventable ones: forgot they were scheduled, didn't see the latest version, thought someone swapped, misunderstood which Saturday. For everything else, you know Thursday instead of Saturday. That's the difference between finding coverage and scrambling.
Common Questions
What if employees don't confirm?
You see who hasn't confirmed. You text them. Same as before, except now you only text the three people who haven't confirmed instead of all twelve.
What if they confirm but don't show up?
Then you know they're unreliable. You have data on it. You stop scheduling them for critical shifts. The system doesn't fix character. It gives you information.
Do I need to buy phones for my staff?
No. Most restaurant staff have smartphones. They download the app. If someone doesn't have a phone, you can mark them confirmed manually.
What about people who don't check apps?
They check their phones constantly. This is one tap to see their schedule and confirm. Easier than responding to your text asking "you working Saturday?"
Try It
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