Shift roster and hours planner

What the shift roster and hours planner does

Rosters are easier to fix on paper than after the week has been worked. This planner takes the planned hours for each employee on each day, adds them up, shows the hours above the normal week as expected overtime and multiplies by the hourly rate to give the labour cost of the roster before anyone clocks in.

Who it is for

Managers of shops, restaurants, clinics, security firms and call centres who plan shifts weekly and need to keep labour cost under control.

How to use the workbook

1. Set the week-starting date, the normal weekly hours and the overtime multiplier.
2. List the employees and their hourly rates.
3. Enter the planned hours for each day.
4. Read the total hours, expected overtime and the cost of the roster.
5. Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.

What is inside

• Seven days of planned hours per employee
• Total hours and expected overtime
• Labour cost of the roster with overtime at your multiplier
• Totals for the whole team
• Space for 50 employees

The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Roster. The main table has the columns Employee; Mon; Tue; Wed; Thu; Fri; Sat; Sun. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.

Tips for getting it right

• Plan the roster at least a week ahead and share it early.
• Check that no one is rostered beyond the legal limits for your sector.
• Compare the planned cost with the sales you expect for the week.
• Keep each week's roster to compare with actual hours.

Why keep this record

Staff records go wrong in small, repeated ways: a figure typed twice, a deadline forgotten, a promise that nobody wrote down. A tidy workbook that everyone uses the same way removes most of those problems. It also gives you something to show an employee, an auditor or a labour officer when a question comes up months later, and it makes the next payroll quicker because the facts are already in one place.

Questions people ask

Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.

Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.

Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.

Keeping it safe and up to date

Payroll records are personal data and tax records at once, so keep the file somewhere only the people who need it can open, and keep each month's copy for at least five years. Statutory rates such as NSSF limits and the Housing Levy change, so check the Rates sheet against the official source before you rely on a figure.

Read how to run payroll for a small business for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Overtime pay calculator. See more payroll templates or ask us for a custom one.

The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.

Related guides, calculators and templates

• Free calculator: Overtime Pay Calculator
• Guide: How to run payroll for a small business in Kenya
• Guide: How PAYE is calculated in Kenya, step by step
• Guide: NSSF contributions explained: tiers, limits and what you pay
• Another template: Annual leave planner and register
• Another template: Overtime and leave tracker
• Another template: Overtime cost and approval tracker

Need something different? Request a custom template, browse all guides or see every Excel template.