Absence types and policies
Configure absence types (balanced or unbalanced, paid or unpaid, day counting), create accrual policies and assign members to them in Work Time › Configuration.
Absence types define what employees can request (paid leave, RTT, sick leave, unpaid leave...). Balanced types get one or more policies that credit days automatically to the members assigned to them. Everything is set up in Work Time › Configuration › Absence types.
Before you start
- You need the Admin or Super admin access level.
- Two settings of an absence type can't be changed after creation: the category (Balanced / Unbalanced) and the Day counting mode. Decide them carefully.
Open the absence types
- In the sidebar, go to Work Time › Configuration. The Settings page shows three cards: Absence types, Holidays and Company schedules.
- On the Absence types card, click Manage absences types.
- The page lists each absence type as an expandable panel. Open a panel to see its policies.
Create an absence type
- Click Create absence type.
- Fill in the Create absence type window. By default the type is Balanced, Paid, counted in Worked days and coloured Blue:
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Absence type title | The name employees will see, for example "Paid leave" or "Sick leave". Required. |
| Color | Click the current colour and choose Blue, Green, Light Green, Turquoise, Purple, Pink, Red, Orange, Yellow or Light Gray. |
| Category | Balanced (the type uses a day balance credited by policies, for example paid leave or RTT) or Unbalanced (no balance, for example sick leave or special leave). Can't be changed later. |
| Paid / Unpaid | Whether the absence is paid. It can be changed later. |
| Day counting | Worked days ("Only days actually worked in the company count — typically Monday to Friday."), Open days ("Every day except Sundays and public holidays counts — including Saturdays.") or Calendar days ("Every day counts, weekends and public holidays included — used for sick and parental leave."). The window notes that it "Applies to future requests and accruals only."; once the type is created, the mode is locked. |
- Click Create. "Absence type has been created successfully." confirms it.
What happens next depends on the category:
- Unbalanced type: it is immediately available to every active member, through Add another type of absence in the request form. It has no policy to configure: its panel shows a single entry assigned to All users.
- Balanced type: employees can't use it until you create a policy and assign members to it.
Which day counting to choose
| Mode | Typical use | Example: Monday to Friday off |
|---|---|---|
| Worked days (jours ouvrés) | Paid leave counted in worked days, RTT. Follows each member's company schedule. | 5 days |
| Open days (jours ouvrables) | Paid leave counted in open days (French legal default of 30 days a year). The count runs until the day before the return to work. | 6 days |
| Calendar days | Sick leave, maternity, paternity or parental leave. | 5 days, 7 from Monday to Sunday |
Holidays are never counted in worked days and open days, and always counted in calendar days.
Edit, deactivate or delete an absence type
Open the three-dot menu on the right of the absence type panel:
| Action | Effect |
|---|---|
| Edit absence type | Change the title, colour and Paid / Unpaid. The category and day counting are locked. |
| Inactivate absence type | "This absence type will no longer be available for new requests." Existing requests and balances are kept. For a balanced type you must stop all its policies first: the entry then reads Inactivate absence type (stop all its policies first) and is disabled. |
| Activate absence type | Makes an inactive type available again for new requests. |
| Delete absence type | "This absence type will be permanently deleted and can’t be recovered." Only possible while the type has never been used (no requests, no balance movements). Otherwise, inactivate it. |
Create a policy
Policies only exist for Balanced types. A type can have several policies, for example one per reference year ("Paid leave 2025 - 2026", "Paid leave 2026 - 2027"), but two active policies of the same type can't overlap in time.
- Open the panel of the balanced absence type and click Create policy (or Create first policy if it has none).
- Step 1 – policy info. The absence type is preselected at the top (Absence type title, you can pick another balanced type) with "This absence type is counted in (unit)." The period is prefilled from today to the same day next year, Earning Frequency on Month and Credit timing on Beginning of period. Fill in:
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Policy title | For example "Paid leave 2025 - 2026". Ending the name with a year or a year range displays that period under the balance on the employee's calendar. |
| Earning rate | Number of days credited each period, in steps of 0.5. Can't be 0. |
| Earning Frequency | Month or Year. |
| Credit timing ("When should the credit take place?") | Beginning of period (1st of the month, or 1 January) or End of period (last day of the month, or 31 December). |
| Period: Start date | First day of accrual. |
| Period: End date | Last day of accrual. No more days are credited after it, but the balance remains usable. |
| Valid to (optional) | Expiry date of the balance: after this date, the remaining days are lost and the policy can no longer be used in requests. Employees see "To use before" and this date. |
| This policy can have a negative balance | Tick it to let members book more days than they have (for example to anticipate future accruals). |
If the earning rate is below the French legal paid leave minimum for the counting mode (2.08 worked days or 2.5 open days per month, 25 or 30 per year), a Check rate warning appears: "Below the legal paid-leave minimum of ... Make sure this policy is at least as favorable." It is only a warning; you can still create the policy.
- Click Next. Step 2 – members: tick the members to assign to the policy, using search and filters, or select all. Click Next.
- Step 3 – assignment dates. Under Assigned to you see the selected members (for example "3 users"). Choose:
- Start date: Hire date (each member's hire date, or the policy start date if none is set) or Custom (pick a date);
- End date: Departure (no end date: the member stays on the policy) or Custom (pick a date).
- Click Create. "Policy has been created successfully." confirms it.
Important: When a member is assigned with a start date in the past, OpenAleph immediately credits the days they would have earned since that date, prorated to the days worked in the first period. For example, with 2.08 days a month from 1 January and a member hired on 15 January, January is credited in proportion to the worked days from 15 to 31 January.
Read a policy
Each policy of the panel shows its title, a status tag (Active or Stopped) and, when opened, the Policy info: start date, end date (with "Valid to:" and the expiry date if any), Credit timing, Earning rate (for example "2.08/month") and the assignees (All users, one name, or Multiple users).
Manage the assignees of a policy
Open the three-dot menu of the policy:
- Add assignees: select members who are not yet on the policy, then choose their start and end dates (step 3 above). Their prorated days are credited immediately.
- Manage assignees: select current assignees (the table shows their Start date and End date) and change their start or end date. Set an end date to stop crediting days to a member who changes contract or leaves. Changing the dates recalculates their credited days.
Tip: When you create a new member in People, OpenAleph reminds you "Remember to assign this member to an absence policy." with a shortcut to Absence types.
Edit, stop or delete a policy
| Action (policy menu) | Effect |
|---|---|
| Edit policy | Change the Policy title and the Valid to (optional) expiry date. The earning rate, frequency, timing and period can't be changed once the policy exists. |
| Stop policy | "Are you sure? This policy will be permanently stopped and can’t be reactivated." No more days are credited. Members keep their remaining balance and can still use it (until the Valid to date, if any). |
| Delete policy | Only offered when the policy has no assignee, and only possible if it was never used. "This policy will be permanently deleted and can’t be recovered." |
To change the rules for the future (for example a new earning rate next year), stop or end the current policy and create a new one starting after it.
Common questions
An employee says the absence type is missing from their request form.
For a balanced type, check that the employee is assigned to an active policy whose period covers the dates they chose (menu Manage assignees), and that they have a positive balance or that the policy accepts a negative balance. For an unbalanced type, check that it's active: employees add it with Add another type of absence.
"Cannot create active rule that overlaps with existing active rules for the same leave type"
Two active policies of the same absence type can't cover the same dates. Change the period of the new policy, or stop the other one first.
Can I change the day counting of an existing absence type?
No. Every request and balance is counted with the mode chosen at creation. Create a new absence type with the right mode, move members to it, and inactivate the old one once its balances are used.
How do I give extra days to one person?
Use a manual adjustment from the planning: see Adjust a member's balance.
When exactly are days credited?
Every day, OpenAleph checks the policies: monthly policies credit on the 1st or the last day of the month, yearly policies on 1 January or 31 December, according to the Credit timing. See Balances and exports.
Still stuck?
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