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Fairness buckets ensure equitable workload distribution among a specific group of employees for selected shifts during a defined period.

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Use Cases

  • Equal shift distribution - Ensure all team members get similar hours
  • Weekend rotation - Fairly distribute unpopular shifts
  • Skill-based teams - Balance workload within specialized groups

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Basic Fairness

Define a fairness bucket with employees, shifts, and the evaluation period: 
{
  "employees": [
    { "name": "Alice" },
    { "name": "Bob" },
    { "name": "Carol" }
  ],
  "shifts": [
    { "name": "shift-1", "from": "2024-01-01T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-01T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 },
    { "name": "shift-2", "from": "2024-01-02T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-02T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 },
    { "name": "shift-3", "from": "2024-01-03T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-03T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 },
    { "name": "shift-4", "from": "2024-01-04T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-04T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 },
    { "name": "shift-5", "from": "2024-01-05T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-05T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 },
    { "name": "shift-6", "from": "2024-01-06T08:00:00", "to": "2024-01-06T16:00:00", "min": 1, "max": 1 }
  ],
  "fairnessBuckets": [
    {
      "employees": ["Alice", "Bob", "Carol"],
      "shifts": ["shift-1", "shift-2", "shift-3", "shift-4", "shift-5", "shift-6"],
      "period": {
        "from": "2024-01-01",
        "to": "2024-01-07"
      },
      "target": "PT16H"
    }
  ]
}
The solver distributes the 6 shifts evenly: each employee gets 2 shifts during the week.

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Fairness Properties

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employees
array
required
List of employee names to include in this fairness group
​
shifts
array
required
List of shift names to distribute fairly among the employees
​
period
object
Time period during which fairness is evaluated
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target
string (ISO 8601 duration)
required
Target workload per employee (e.g., PT40H for 40 hours)

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Multiple Fairness Buckets

Create separate fairness groups for different teams or shift types: 
{
  "fairnessBuckets": [
    {
      "employees": ["Alice", "Bob"],
      "shifts": ["morning-1", "morning-2", "morning-3"],
      "period": { "from": "2024-01-01", "to": "2024-01-07" },
      "target": "PT12H"
    },
    {
      "employees": ["Carol", "Dave"],
      "shifts": ["evening-1", "evening-2", "evening-3"],
      "period": { "from": "2024-01-01", "to": "2024-01-07" },
      "target": "PT12H"
    }
  ]
}
Each bucket operates independently. Morning shifts are distributed among Alice and Bob, while evening shifts go to Carol and Dave.

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Target-Based Fairness

Set a specific workload target instead of equal distribution: 
{
  "fairnessBuckets": [
    {
      "employees": ["Alice", "Bob", "Carol"],
      "shifts": ["shift-1", "shift-2", "shift-3"],
      "period": { "from": "2024-01-01", "to": "2024-01-07" },
      "target": "PT24H"
    }
  ]
}
Use target when employees have different availability or contract types but should work toward the same weekly hours.

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Fairness vs Rules

ApproachBest For
FairnessEqual distribution of similar shifts
RulesHard limits on working days/hours
CombinedFair distribution within labor law constraints