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Removing Personnel from System (Scheduling Module)

Purpose Statement

This process allows administrators to properly remove personnel from scheduled assignments when they separate from the agency and update their system status accordingly. By following this procedure, you ensure accurate staffing records, maintain historical data integrity, and prevent inactive personnel from appearing on future schedules while preserving their past assignment history for reporting purposes.

Background Information

When an employee separates from your fire or EMS agency—whether through retirement, resignation, termination, or transfer—it's essential to update their status in First Due systematically. This process involves two critical steps: removing them from future shift assignments on the Shift Board and updating their personnel status to reflect their inactive state.

Properly managing personnel separations ensures:

  • Accurate shift coverage and staffing projections
  • Clean scheduling data for future assignments
  • Preserved historical records for compliance and reporting
  • Prevention of accidental assignment or notification to separated personnel
  • Maintained audit trail for personnel transactions

Common Use Cases:

  • Employee retirement or resignation
  • Termination of employment
  • Transfer to another agency or department
  • Extended leave of absence requiring removal from active scheduling
  • Conversion from active to reserve/volunteer status

Required Permissions

To complete this process, users must have the following permissions in First Due:

Scheduling Permissions:

  • Access Scheduling
     
  • Access Shift Board
     
  • Add/Edit Personnel into Shift Board
     
  • Delete instance on Shift Board
     
  • Delete all occurrences on the Shift Board

Personnel Management Permissions:

  • Personnel Records
     
  • Edit personnel 
     
  • Create personnel
     
  • Delete personnel

Video

 

Step-by-Step Guide

Part 1: Remove User from Shift Board Assignments

Step 1: Navigate to the Shift Board

  1. From the main navigation menu, select Scheduling
  2. Click on Shift Board from the dropdown menu
  3. The Shift Board view will display all scheduled assignments
     

Step 2: Locate the User's Final Assignment

  1. Navigate to the last scheduled day for the person who will be separating from your agency
  2. Locate that person's assignment on the Shift Board calendar 
NotesNote: You should identify their assignment on the effective date of separation or the last date they will actively work

Step 3: Edit the Assignment End Date

  1. Hover your cursor to the right of the person's name on their assignment
  2. When the pencil icon appears, select it to open the assignment editor
  3. In the assignment editing window that appears, locate the "Until" field
  4. Enter the effective date of the separation into the "Until" field
    • This date should be the last day the person is scheduled to work
    • Use MM/DD/YYYY format or select from the calendar picker
       

Step 4: Handle Future Actions and Trades

  1. The system will prompt you regarding any future actions or trades involving this person
  2. For all future actions and trades, select "Delete All"
    • This removes the person from any pending shift trades
    • This cancels any future assignment modifications
  3. Review the deletion summary if presented
  4. Select Save when done
     

Part 2: Update Personnel Status

Step 5: Navigate to Personnel List

  1. From the main navigation menu, select Personnel
  2. Click on Personnel List from the dropdown menu
  3. The Personnel List will display all users in your organization
     

Step 6: Access the User's Profile

  1. Use the search function or scroll to locate the person whose status you wish to change
  2. Once located, select the pencil icon to the right of their name to edit their profile
  3. Their full personnel profile will open in edit mode
     

Step 7: Change System Status

  1. In the personnel profile, locate the status dropdown menu in the lower center of the screen
  2. Select the appropriate status from the dropdown menu:
    • Inactive (most common for separated personnel)
    • Retired
    • Terminated
    • Other status as defined by your agency
  3. The status change will be reflected immediately upon selection
     

Step 8: Disable System Access

  1. Locate the System User slider toggle
    • This controls whether the person can log into First Due
  2. Move the System User slider to the off/disabled position (slider should be gray or to the left)
     
  1. Locate the Field Crew/Service Provider slider toggle
    • This controls whether the person appears as available for field assignments
  2. Move the Field Crew/Service Provider slider to the off/disabled position
     

 

 

 
  1. Review all changes to ensure accuracy
  2. Select Save to commit all changes
     

Step 9: Verify the Changes

  1. Return to Scheduling Shift Board
  2. Navigate to future dates to confirm the person no longer appears on scheduled assignments
  3. Navigate to past dates to verify historical data is preserved
  4. On past dates, a special indicator  should appear just to the left of their name
    • This symbol indicates the person is no longer an active member of the organization
    • Their past assignment history remains visible for reporting purposes
       

Understanding Delete Options

We strongly recommend NOT using the delete option when an individual moves to inactive status. Deleting assignments reduces your ability to pull accurate historical staffing reports and may impact compliance documentation.

Instead, follow the process outlined above:

  • Set an end date using the "Until" field
  • Change the personnel status to inactive
  • Disable system access toggles

This approach preserves historical data while preventing future scheduling.

Delete Button Definitions

If you must use delete functions, here's how they work:

1. Delete This Date

  • Removes the user from the assignment for the selected date only
  • Does not affect assignments before or after this specific date
  • Use case: Removing someone from a single shift while maintaining their assignment pattern

2. This Date and the Following

  • Removes the user from the assignment for the selected date and all subsequent dates
  • Preserves assignment history prior to the selected date
  • Use case: Similar to using the "Until" field but with permanent deletion

3. All Occurrences

  • Removes the user from all occurrences within the specific rotation
  • Does NOT remove them from assignments on other rotations
  • Example: Selecting this option would remove "Peter" from all C-Shift assignments but would not affect his previous B-Shift assignments or assignments on other rotations
  • Use case: Removing someone from a specific rotation pattern while maintaining other assignments
     

Important Considerations:

  • Deleted assignment data cannot be recovered
  • Deletion may create gaps in historical staffing reports
  • Compliance audits and FLSA documentation may require complete assignment history

  • Consider your agency's record retention policies before deleting any data

     

Best Practices

Do's:

  • Always set an end date using the "Until" field rather than deleting assignments
  • Document the separation date and reason in personnel notes or comments
  • Verify the person is removed from all future assignments before finalizing changes
  • Check for any pending time-off requests, trades, or swaps before processing separation
  • Maintain communication with payroll regarding final pay periods and the separation date
  • Review the person's assignment history to ensure proper documentation of hours worked
  • Create a checklist for personnel separations to ensure consistency across all users
  • Coordinate with your IT or system administrator if the person had administrative privileges
  • Update any automated reports or dashboards that may reference the separated employee

Don'ts:

  • Don't delete historical assignment data—preserve it for reporting and compliance purposes
  • Don't leave system access enabled for separated personnel
  • Don't forget to disable both System User and Field Crew/Service Provider toggles
  • Don't process separations without confirming the official effective date with HR or administration
  • Don't remove someone from the Shift Board without also updating their personnel status
  • Don't assume the process is complete without verifying changes in both modules
  • Avoid making changes during active shift periods to prevent confusion among on-duty personnel

Tips for Efficiency:

  • Process separations as soon as the effective date is confirmed
  • Create a standard operating procedure (SOP) for personnel separations in your agency
  • Consider running a report of upcoming separations (retirements, contract endings) to plan ahead
  • Use the personnel status field consistently across your organization for clearer reporting
  • If your agency has multiple stations or battalions, coordinate status changes with all affected supervisors
  • Document any special circumstances in personnel notes for future reference

Common Mistakes to Avoid:

  • Setting an incorrect separation date that doesn't align with final shift worked
  • Forgetting to address future trades or shift swaps before setting the end date
  • Only updating one system (Shift Board OR personnel status) but not both
  • Deleting assignment history instead of using the "Until" field
  • Leaving Field Crew/Service Provider enabled, which may cause the person to appear in apparatus staffing
  • Not communicating the change to dispatch or scheduling coordinators
  • Processing the separation too early, before the person's actual last day

Troubleshooting & FAQs

Q: The person still appears on the Shift Board for future dates after I saved changes. What went wrong?

A: This typically occurs when:

  • The "Until" date was set incorrectly or not saved properly
  • Multiple rotations exist and only one rotation's assignments were updated
  • The person has assignments on different shifts or battalions that weren't addressed
  • Browser cache is displaying outdated information

Solution:

  • Verify the "Until" date was saved correctly by reopening the assignment
  • Check all rotations and shifts where the person may be assigned
  • Clear your browser cache and reload the Shift Board
  • Confirm both System User and Field Crew/Service Provider toggles are disabled

Q: Can I reverse this process if someone returns to active duty?

A: Yes, the process can be reversed:

  1. Navigate to Personnel Personnel List
  2. Edit the person's profile and change their status back to "Active"
  3. Enable the System User and Field Crew/Service Provider toggles
  4. Return to Scheduling Shift Board and create new assignments as needed
  5. Note: Historical assignments before the separation remain unchanged

Q: What happens to the person's past ePCR reports and incident data?

A: All historical data remains intact and accessible:

  • Past incident reports and ePCRs are preserved and associated with the person's profile
  • Reports can still be run showing their participation in past incidents
  • The  symbol on past Shift Board dates indicates their current inactive status but doesn't delete history
  • This ensures compliance with NEMSIS data retention requirements

Q: I accidentally deleted assignments instead of using the "Until" field. Can I recover them?

A: Deleted assignments may not be easily recoverable:

  • Contact your First Due system administrator immediately
  • They may be able to restore data from backup systems depending on your agency's configuration
  • Prevention is key—always use the "Until" field rather than delete options
  • Document the deletion with your supervisor and IT department

Q: The person is moving to a different shift or battalion, not separating. Should I follow this process?

A: No, this process is specifically for separations from the agency. For personnel transfers:

  • Use the transfer or reassignment functions within Scheduling
  • Update their primary shift/station assignment in their personnel profile
  • Do not disable System User or Field Crew/Service Provider toggles
  • Contact your system administrator for guidance on internal transfers

Q: Should I change the status to "Inactive" or "Terminated"?

A: The status depends on your agency's policies and the separation circumstances:

  • Inactive: General separation, retirement, or resignation
  • Terminated: Involuntary separation or dismissal
  • Retired: Specifically for retirement situations
  • Consult your HR department or agency policy manual for specific guidance
  • Maintain consistency in status usage across your organization for accurate reporting

Q: The person is going on extended leave (military deployment, medical leave). Should I use this process?

A: Not necessarily:

  • Extended leave may not require full separation processing
  • Consider creating a temporary inactive period instead
  • Consult with your HR department about maintaining benefits and status during leave
  • You may want to remove them from active scheduling without changing their system status
  • Check if First Due has specific leave management features for your situation

Q: I can't find the System User or Field Crew/Service Provider toggles. Where are they located?

A: These toggles should be visible in the personnel profile editor:

  • They are typically located in the middle to lower section of the profile screen
  • You may need to scroll down within the personnel profile editor
  • If you still cannot see them, verify you have the correct permissions
  • Contact your First Due administrator if toggles are not visible—permissions may need adjustment

Q: Will this remove the person from email notifications and alerts?

A: Yes, disabling the System User toggle will typically remove them from:

  • System-generated email notifications
  • Mobile app alerts and push notifications
  • Automated schedule reminders
  • However, verify with your notification settings and distribution lists
  • Remove them manually from any external email groups or third-party notification systems

Q: How do I handle partial separations, such as someone moving from full-time to part-time status?

A: For status changes rather than full separations:

  • Do not use this complete separation process
  • Update their employment status or shift assignment in their personnel profile
  • Adjust their rotation assignments on the Shift Board to reflect their new schedule
  • Maintain their System User and Field Crew/Service Provider access if they remain active
  • Create new assignment patterns that reflect their part-time schedule

Q: What if the separation date changes after I've already processed it?

A: You can update the separation date:

  1. Return to their assignment on the Shift Board
  2. Edit the assignment again and modify the "Until" field to the new date
  3. Add new assignments if the separation date moved later
  4. Update any documentation or notes reflecting the change
  5. Communicate the change to scheduling coordinators and payroll

Additional Notes

This process is critical for maintaining accurate personnel records and ensuring proper staffing projections. The combination of updating both the Shift Board assignments and personnel status provides a complete separation workflow that preserves historical data while preventing future scheduling conflicts.

Always coordinate personnel separations with your HR department, payroll administrator, and scheduling coordinators to ensure all systems and stakeholders are properly updated. Consider creating an agency-specific checklist that includes additional steps such as equipment return, credential revocation, exit interviews, and final documentation requirements.

For agencies with complex staffing patterns involving multiple stations, battalions, or specialized units, verify that the separated person is removed from all relevant assignments across the entire organization, not just their primary assignment location.