How do you write a schedule for a restaurant?

Posted by Damian Roberti on November 4, 2022

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The Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Your Meals
It is impossible to run an efficient dining room service without a practical schedule for the workers. It is essential to have a fundamental comprehension of staff scheduling prior to investing any effort in the creation of a schedule for the employees. It is important for a restaurant to create a timetable that takes into account a range of factors, such as gratuities, the number of hours worked each week, vacation time, overtime pay, and the laws that govern the employment of children. In spite of the fact that it could appear to be challenging, there are a few things to keep in mind that will make the process go much more smoothly than it would otherwise.

How do you write a schedule for a restaurant

What Exactly Do Workers Who Receive Tips Do?
A person whose principal source of income comes from tips is referred to as a tipped employee. Although it is common practice to tip workers in a variety of professions, servers and bartenders are among those who receive tips the most frequently.

The amount of a gratuity is determined in a manner that varies from state to state. In establishments where employers are required to pay staff the entire minimum wage before deducting tips, customers are subject to the expectation that they will tip less, or not at all. On the other hand, servers typically only receive a limited cash compensation, which is combined with tip payments to meet the federal minimum wage or more.

This is due to the fact that tipping is common practice in the majority of the United States, even in restaurants. How do you write a schedule for a restaurant

In addition to this, keep in mind that some of the members of your crew will not be eligible to collect tips. It is common practice for the front-of-house personnel to split their tips at the end of the shift, but the back-of-house team does not do this. In light of this, you should make sure that your prep cooks and dishwashing employees earn an appropriate hourly wage.

How to Give Your Employees a Balanced Schedule During the Workweek
It is essential to keep in mind that some shifts are more lucrative than others. This is due to the fact that shifts that see a higher volume of customers also generate a greater amount of tips, which helps to compensate for the fact that not all workers are given tips. This is a fact that cannot be avoided, regardless of the kind of eating establishment you run. There are a few various approaches that you may use to ensure that everyone receives the appropriate quantity of pointers throughout the course of the week.

Alter the start and end hours of each person's shift.
Your company almost definitely has both busy and slow times throughout the course of the day. Your coffee shop will generally be at its busiest in the early morning, when customers stop by for a cup of coffee or breakfast before continuing on their way to work. If you own a bar, the evening is likely to be your busiest hour because that is when people want to relax with a drink after having a long day at work. Establishing an open line of communication with your crew about these tendencies will allow you to guarantee that everyone will have the opportunity to earn fair tips regardless of how their schedule is altered.

Different people should have different shift times.
One of the simplest ways to deal with the shift variation is to spread your personnel equitably, allowing both senior staff and new hires an equal chance to experience a variety of different times of the day. This is one of the most effective ways to deal with the shift variation. This will also ensure that everyone obtains appropriate experience and is adequately trained on all of the numerous duties involved with each shift period. This, in turn, will make it possible for staff members to cover for one another with greater flexibility.

Prepare for an Appropriate Amount of Participants
Be sure to schedule more people during times of high activity and fewer people during times of lower activity. This not only ensures that tips are dispersed equitably, but it also ensures that there are sufficient members of staff to match the demand. If you are confused as to which parts of the day have the highest volume of foot traffic, you may download graphs from the majority of point-of-sale (POS) systems that monitor transaction activity and see exactly when your traffic is at its highest and lowest points.

Even though it may appear to be a good plan to make up for slower times by paying a higher hourly rate during the lean months, the likelihood is that your staff will find your slower shifts to be less challenging. Because of this, it is logical that they should generate a greater profit as a result of supplying a greater number of customers. On the other hand, idle time can be put to better use by being put toward productive activities such as cleaning or attending to other urgent concerns, so retaining its value and utility. However, you most certainly do not need three employees to sweep the floor, and if you have an excessive number of staff members idle at the same time, they will have to divide the few tips that they received and will only take home a few pennies each.

Maintain a few people on call at all times.
Even though keeping certain staff on call is not the best option, utilizing this technique can ensure that you have the assistance you require in the event that business takes up unexpectedly. In a similar vein, if business is slow, you shouldn't feel bad about sending your employees home early. It is not reasonable to ask the members of your team to adjust their personal calendars in order to satisfy last-minute requests; but, it is fine to periodically be frank with them about being flexible for a few hours on a Saturday. You can also encourage your managers to step in if necessary if they are paid more per hour because they are in a better position to do so.

How do you write a schedule for a restaurant
Employ many managers
You will be able to alleviate some of the pressure on your manager if you choose to designate two co-managers. If you follow these steps, you will be able to have a manager on call around the clock to deal with any issues that could be too time-consuming for your regular team to address. Even while it can appear to be counterproductive for your company to pay the salary of two managers, making sure that there is always a manager on duty can considerably improve the experience that customers have. And as is common knowledge, the only way for your company to be successful is to provide a service that satisfies the needs of its customers.

Keep in mind that the people who work for you have lives outside of the workplace.
Whether they are juggling work with education, a family, or a second job, it is probable that each of your employees has a special scheduling demand. When someone first starts a new job, you should be able to get a sense of their individual schedule as soon as possible. You will be able to staff your company with employees who have varying levels of availability if you do it this way. Even so, alterations to the schedule are possible because life has a way of intervening. Therefore, when developing a schedule that is equitable, it is necessary to demonstrate flexibility and take into account the availability of your workforce.

Make sure that your employees have adequate time off to rest.
It is essential to make certain that each employee has adequate time off in order to reduce the likelihood of burnout and anxiety caused by overwork. The most desirable outcome would be to recruit sufficient personnel so that everyone could enjoy two days off in a row once every seven days. In the event that there is an emergency, you should only ask the same person to close and open the following day. You want your employees to feel refreshed when they go back to work, so give them plenty of time off beforehand.

You should also come up with a transparent process that employees can follow in order to make requests for time off to attend to personal or family responsibilities.

Putting together a timetable for your restaurant.
The timetables of the vast majority of restaurants are organized as follows:

It's possible that this is a standard arrangement for a bakery or coffee shop—something straightforward. Despite the fact that a full-service restaurant would almost certainly require additional workers, this example ought to be sufficient to convey the general idea. How do you write a schedule for a restaurant

putting together a timetable.
As you can see, each day needs the collaboration of two employees for at least one hour. This is done so that one person can take care of any preparation, restocking, or other back-of-house responsibilities while the other person can continue to assist customers. Each employee is given a shift duration that is unique to them in order to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to make comments and get training.

You'll also notice that even though it's ideal for your shifts to start and end at the same time every time, there may be instances in which you need to add a few extra hours to a shift in order to account for an employee's absence or another circumstance. This is something that you'll notice because it's ideal for your shifts to start and end at the same time every time. In circumstances like these, it is a smart idea to plan longer shifts for quiet days in order to minimize overexertion among your team members. The following is a list of things to keep in mind when developing your timetable for personnel:

Find out how many of your employees are subject to limitations established by labor laws, such as the hours assigned to children. For example, find out how many of your employees are susceptible to limitations imposed by labor laws.
Make a list of the days off that are allotted to each person.
Find out which positions are required at different times throughout the day (i.e. what time should the prep cooks be there vs. when should your second bartender arrive to help cover the rush).

Check to see that the time commitments of your managers are not too close together. And, for that matter, the schedules of all the other people.
To guarantee that there is sufficient coverage throughout the day, every shift must be filled.
For purposes of accounting, you need to perform a full-time equivalent (FTE) calculation.

How do you write a schedule for a restaurant
In this straightforward illustration, there are a limited number of workers and shifts; however, in more complex businesses, there will surely be a greater number of employees and moving parts. Having a larger staff will almost likely make things more difficult; yet, it will also give you more leeway to rearrange things in a way that will be to everyone's advantage.

Restaurant Reservation and Scheduling Software
Even though it is possible to organize your calendar manually, there are apps that can help you construct your weekly agenda in a way that is far more rapid and straightforward.

Software has the capability of helping start-up businesses and schedulers save a significant amount of time. You may purchase software from a variety of different sources, so it is important to spend some time to investigate your alternatives and select the one that is going to fulfill your needs in the most efficient manner. Some software, like as 7shifts, is designed to be compatible with all different kinds of foodservice environments. Other applications, such as ScheduleFly, are geared specifically for certain types of users, one of which is independent restaurant owners. When developing a schedule, there is no one "right" method; rather, you should select the alternative that serves your needs in the most efficient manner.

If you don't want to use software, one option is to go with the more conventional method, which involves using a calendar, an employee roster, and a little bit more time.

Your schedule written on a whiteboard for posting purposes.
Boards of Advisors for Shops
It's likely that you'll have to make frequent adjustments to the schedule that your crew follows. Because it is generally considered to be good practice to offer your staff as much notice as you possibly can, you should plan on posting your schedule at least two weeks in advance. It is usual practice to publish timetables by drawing them on a whiteboard using grid lines. You can use a large whiteboard to write your printed schedule on, and then you can give your staff members the freedom to transfer shifts whenever they see fit using that schedule. Be careful to keep a close eye on the schedules of minors as well as their overtime.

Additional Considerations for the Routine of Restaurants
Putting together a timetable for a restaurant can frequently feel like trying to juggle multiple balls. Just when you think you have things structured in a way that is both fair and effective, something new will come into the picture. The following is a list of items to bear in mind, especially if you plan on asking any of your workers to put in extra hours during a given week:

Overtime
Workers are eligible for overtime pay whenever they clock in for more than 40 hours during the course of a single workweek. They continue to earn their regular remuneration, in addition to an additional fifty percent of their hourly rate for each hour worked in excess of 40 hours. Therefore, if one of your prep cooks makes $10 per hour and works 42 hours per week, they would make $15 per hour for the two hours of overtime that they put in over and above their usual shift. In order to avoid paying employees extra for working more hours than they are scheduled for, restaurants should be sure to keep their staffing levels at or below 40 hours per week. You might also want to encourage overtime work among your staff members so that they have the option to make more money, even though the additional hours of work they put in might be damaging to their energy levels.

regulations that regulate the hours that minors can work
Jobs in the hospitality and food service industries are consistently ranked among the most desirable for people of working age. In point of fact, the majority of people's first jobs consist of either assisting customers or doing the dishes in a restaurant. It is important for you, as the owner of a restaurant, to be familiar with the regulations that govern the hiring of minors since it is possible that you will get job applications or inquiries about opportunities from people who are younger than the age of 18.

comparable to full-time (FTE)
It is beneficial to compute your work hours as if you were a full-time employee so that you may use this information in the accounting process. All different kinds of businesses that employ a significant number of people on a part-time basis favor pursuing this course of action. In addition to making things more transparent when it comes to tax time, calculating FTE helps ensure that you have sufficient coverage for each shift without having to hire an excessive number of staff members. Ensure that you are able to supply the required amount of hours to each employee in order to make their labor meaningful without overworking them or pushing them to work more hours. You will be able to make more accurate projections regarding the number of hours that each employee will be required to work as well as the amount of time that will be devoted to the training of each position if you calculate the Full-Time Equivalent.

If you're getting a headache from processing all this information, just keep in mind that restaurant scheduling doesn't necessarily have to be highly complicated in order to be challenging. The most effective way to avoid issues about the schedule of your personnel is to instill a culture of accountability inside your business. Earning the respect and trust of your coworkers allows you to cultivate a motivated working environment in which your team will want to be on time. The most effective step you can do to alleviate stress when the allotted time for an activity approaches is to put together a reliable and trustworthy workforce. If you combine the responsibility of your workers with scheduling software and other strategies that keep you organized, you will become an expert planner very quickly.

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