diff --git a/snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm/__init__.py b/snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm/__init__.py
index 0ca00f6..3bf926c 100644
--- a/snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm/__init__.py
+++ b/snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm/__init__.py
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 from pathlib import Path
 import re
 import shlex
+import shutil
 import subprocess
 import time
 from dataclasses import dataclass, field
@@ -59,6 +60,10 @@ def _get_status_command_default():
     squeue_available = is_query_tool_available("squeue")
     # squeue is assumed to always be available on SLURM clusters
 
+    is_slurm_available = shutil.which("sinfo") is not None
+    if not is_slurm_available:
+        return None
+
     if not squeue_available and not sacct_available:
         raise WorkflowError(
             "Neither 'sacct' nor 'squeue' commands are available on this "
@@ -74,6 +79,15 @@ def _get_status_command_default():
 def _get_status_command_help():
     """Get help text with computed default."""
     default_cmd = _get_status_command_default()
+
+    # if SLURM is not available (should not occur, only
+    # in 3rd party CI tests)
+    if default_cmd is None:
+        return (
+            "Command to query job status. Options: 'sacct', 'squeue'. "
+            "SLURM not detected on this system, so no status command can be used."
+        )
+
     sacct_available = is_query_tool_available("sacct")
     squeue_recommended = should_recommend_squeue_status_command()
 
diff --git a/tests/test_parsing.py b/tests/test_parsing.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b167a7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_parsing.py
@@ -0,0 +1,146 @@
+"""Tests for parsing functions that don't require SLURM to be installed."""
+from io import StringIO
+import pandas as pd
+from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm.efficiency_report import (
+    parse_sacct_data,
+    time_to_seconds,
+)
+
+
+def test_parse_sacct_data():
+    test_data = [
+        "10294159|b10191d0-6985-4c3a-8ccb-"
+        "aa7d23ebffc7|rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_"
+        "simulate_reads|00:01:31|00:24.041|1|1||32000M",
+        "10294159.batch|batch||00:01:31|00:03.292|1|1|71180K|",
+        "10294159.0|python3.12||00:01:10|00:20.749|1|1|183612K|",
+        "10294160|b10191d0-6985-4c3a-8ccb-"
+        "aa7d23ebffc7|rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_"
+        "simulate_reads|00:01:30|00:24.055|1|1||32000M",
+        "10294160.batch|batch||00:01:30|00:03.186|1|1|71192K|",
+        "10294160.0|python3.12||00:01:10|00:20.868|1|1|184352K|",
+    ]
+    df = parse_sacct_data(
+        lines=test_data, e_threshold=0.0, run_uuid="test", logger=None
+    )
+    output = StringIO()
+    df.to_csv(output, index=False)
+    print(output.getvalue())
+    # this should only be two rows once collapsed
+    assert len(df) == 2
+    # check that RuleName is properly inherited from main jobs
+    assert all(df["RuleName"] == "rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_simulate_reads")
+    # check that RequestedMem_MB is properly inherited
+    assert all(df["RequestedMem_MB"] == 32000.0)
+    # check that MaxRSS_MB is properly calculated from job steps
+    assert df.iloc[0]["MaxRSS_MB"] > 0  # Should have actual memory usage from job step
+
+
+class TestTimeToSeconds:
+    """Test the time_to_seconds function with SLURM sacct time formats."""
+
+    def test_elapsed_format_with_days(self):
+        """
+        Test Elapsed format: [D-]HH:MM:SS or
+        [DD-]HH:MM:SS (no fractional seconds).
+        """
+        # Single digit days
+        assert time_to_seconds("1-00:00:00") == 86400  # 1 day
+        assert (
+            time_to_seconds("1-12:30:45") == 86400 + 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
+        )  # 131445
+        assert time_to_seconds("9-23:59:59") == 9 * 86400 + 23 * 3600 + 59 * 60 + 59
+
+        # Double digit days
+        assert (
+            time_to_seconds("10-01:02:03") == 10 * 86400 + 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
+        )  # 867723
+
+    def test_elapsed_format_hours_minutes_seconds(self):
+        """Test Elapsed format: HH:MM:SS (no fractional seconds)."""
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:00:00") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("01:00:00") == 3600  # 1 hour
+        assert time_to_seconds("23:59:59") == 23 * 3600 + 59 * 60 + 59  # 86399
+        assert time_to_seconds("12:30:45") == 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45  # 45045
+
+    def test_totalcpu_format_with_days(self):
+        """
+        Test TotalCPU format: [D-][HH:]MM:SS or [DD-][HH:]MM:SS
+        (with fractional seconds).
+        """
+        # With days and hours
+        assert time_to_seconds("1-12:30:45.5") == 86400 + 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45.5
+        assert (
+            time_to_seconds("10-01:02:03.123")
+            == 10 * 86400 + 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3.123
+        )
+
+        # With days, no hours (MM:SS format)
+        assert time_to_seconds("1-30:45") == 86400 + 30 * 60 + 45
+        assert time_to_seconds("1-30:45.5") == 86400 + 30 * 60 + 45.5
+
+    def test_totalcpu_format_minutes_seconds(self):
+        """Test TotalCPU format: MM:SS with fractional seconds."""
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:00") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("01:00") == 60  # 1 minute
+        assert time_to_seconds("59:59") == 59 * 60 + 59  # 3599
+        assert time_to_seconds("30:45") == 30 * 60 + 45  # 1845
+        assert time_to_seconds("30:45.5") == 30 * 60 + 45.5  # 1845.5
+
+    def test_totalcpu_format_seconds_only(self):
+        """Test TotalCPU format: SS or SS.sss (seconds only with fractional)."""
+        assert time_to_seconds("0") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("1") == 1
+        assert time_to_seconds("30") == 30
+        assert time_to_seconds("59") == 59
+
+        # Fractional seconds
+        assert time_to_seconds("30.5") == 30.5
+        assert time_to_seconds("0.5") == 0.5
+
+    def test_real_world_sacct_examples(self):
+        """Test with realistic sacct time values from actual output."""
+        # From your test data
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:01:31") == 91  # 1 minute 31 seconds
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:24.041") == 24.041  # 24.041 seconds
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:03.292") == 3.292  # 3.292 seconds
+        assert time_to_seconds("00:20.749") == 20.749  # 20.749 seconds
+
+        # Longer running jobs
+        assert time_to_seconds("02:15:30") == 2 * 3600 + 15 * 60 + 30  # 2h 15m 30s
+        assert time_to_seconds("1-12:00:00") == 86400 + 12 * 3600  # 1 day 12 hours
+        assert time_to_seconds("7-00:00:00") == 7 * 86400  # 1 week
+
+    def test_empty_and_invalid_inputs(self):
+        """Test empty, None, and invalid inputs."""
+        assert time_to_seconds("") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("   ") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds(None) == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds(pd.NA) == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("invalid") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("1:2:3:4") == 0  # Too many colons
+        assert time_to_seconds("abc:def") == 0
+        assert time_to_seconds("-1:00:00") == 0  # Negative values
+
+    def test_whitespace_handling(self):
+        """Test that whitespace is properly handled."""
+        assert time_to_seconds(" 30 ") == 30
+        assert time_to_seconds("  1-02:30:45  ") == 86400 + 2 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
+        assert time_to_seconds("\t12:30:45\n") == 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
+
+    def test_pandas_na_values(self):
+        """Test pandas NA and NaN values."""
+        assert time_to_seconds(pd.NA) == 0
+        assert (
+            time_to_seconds(pd.NaType()) == 0 if hasattr(pd, "NaType") else True
+        )  # Skip if not available
+
+    def test_edge_case_values(self):
+        """Test edge case values that might appear in SLURM output."""
+        # Zero padding variations (should work with datetime parsing)
+        assert time_to_seconds("01:02:03") == 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
+        assert time_to_seconds("1:2:3") == 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
+
+        # Single digit values
+        assert time_to_seconds("5") == 5
+        assert time_to_seconds("1:5") == 1 * 60 + 5
diff --git a/tests/tests.py b/tests/tests.py
index 955bc8f..41c23ff 100644
--- a/tests/tests.py
+++ b/tests/tests.py
@@ -7,16 +7,11 @@
 from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
 import pytest
 from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm import ExecutorSettings
-from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm.efficiency_report import (
-    parse_sacct_data,
-    time_to_seconds,
-)
 from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm.utils import set_gres_string
 from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm.submit_string import get_submit_command
 
 from snakemake_executor_plugin_slurm.validation import validate_slurm_extra
 from snakemake_interface_common.exceptions import WorkflowError
-import pandas as pd
 
 
 class TestWorkflows(snakemake.common.tests.TestWorkflowsLocalStorageBase):
@@ -32,147 +27,6 @@ def get_executor_settings(self) -> Optional[ExecutorSettingsBase]:
         )
 
 
-def test_parse_sacct_data():
-    from io import StringIO
-
-    test_data = [
-        "10294159|b10191d0-6985-4c3a-8ccb-"
-        "aa7d23ebffc7|rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_"
-        "simulate_reads|00:01:31|00:24.041|1|1||32000M",
-        "10294159.batch|batch||00:01:31|00:03.292|1|1|71180K|",
-        "10294159.0|python3.12||00:01:10|00:20.749|1|1|183612K|",
-        "10294160|b10191d0-6985-4c3a-8ccb-"
-        "aa7d23ebffc7|rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_"
-        "simulate_reads|00:01:30|00:24.055|1|1||32000M",
-        "10294160.batch|batch||00:01:30|00:03.186|1|1|71192K|",
-        "10294160.0|python3.12||00:01:10|00:20.868|1|1|184352K|",
-    ]
-    df = parse_sacct_data(
-        lines=test_data, e_threshold=0.0, run_uuid="test", logger=None
-    )
-    output = StringIO()
-    df.to_csv(output, index=False)
-    print(output.getvalue())
-    # this should only be two rows once collapsed
-    assert len(df) == 2
-    # check that RuleName is properly inherited from main jobs
-    assert all(df["RuleName"] == "rule_bam_bwa_mem_mosdepth_simulate_reads")
-    # check that RequestedMem_MB is properly inherited
-    assert all(df["RequestedMem_MB"] == 32000.0)
-    # check that MaxRSS_MB is properly calculated from job steps
-    assert df.iloc[0]["MaxRSS_MB"] > 0  # Should have actual memory usage from job step
-
-
-class TestTimeToSeconds:
-    """Test the time_to_seconds function with SLURM sacct time formats."""
-
-    def test_elapsed_format_with_days(self):
-        """
-        Test Elapsed format: [D-]HH:MM:SS or
-        [DD-]HH:MM:SS (no fractional seconds).
-        """
-        # Single digit days
-        assert time_to_seconds("1-00:00:00") == 86400  # 1 day
-        assert (
-            time_to_seconds("1-12:30:45") == 86400 + 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
-        )  # 131445
-        assert time_to_seconds("9-23:59:59") == 9 * 86400 + 23 * 3600 + 59 * 60 + 59
-
-        # Double digit days
-        assert (
-            time_to_seconds("10-01:02:03") == 10 * 86400 + 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
-        )  # 867723
-
-    def test_elapsed_format_hours_minutes_seconds(self):
-        """Test Elapsed format: HH:MM:SS (no fractional seconds)."""
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:00:00") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("01:00:00") == 3600  # 1 hour
-        assert time_to_seconds("23:59:59") == 23 * 3600 + 59 * 60 + 59  # 86399
-        assert time_to_seconds("12:30:45") == 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45  # 45045
-
-    def test_totalcpu_format_with_days(self):
-        """
-        Test TotalCPU format: [D-][HH:]MM:SS or [DD-][HH:]MM:SS
-        (with fractional seconds).
-        """
-        # With days and hours
-        assert time_to_seconds("1-12:30:45.5") == 86400 + 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45.5
-        assert (
-            time_to_seconds("10-01:02:03.123")
-            == 10 * 86400 + 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3.123
-        )
-
-        # With days, no hours (MM:SS format)
-        assert time_to_seconds("1-30:45") == 86400 + 30 * 60 + 45
-        assert time_to_seconds("1-30:45.5") == 86400 + 30 * 60 + 45.5
-
-    def test_totalcpu_format_minutes_seconds(self):
-        """Test TotalCPU format: MM:SS with fractional seconds."""
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:00") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("01:00") == 60  # 1 minute
-        assert time_to_seconds("59:59") == 59 * 60 + 59  # 3599
-        assert time_to_seconds("30:45") == 30 * 60 + 45  # 1845
-        assert time_to_seconds("30:45.5") == 30 * 60 + 45.5  # 1845.5
-
-    def test_totalcpu_format_seconds_only(self):
-        """Test TotalCPU format: SS or SS.sss (seconds only with fractional)."""
-        assert time_to_seconds("0") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("1") == 1
-        assert time_to_seconds("30") == 30
-        assert time_to_seconds("59") == 59
-
-        # Fractional seconds
-        assert time_to_seconds("30.5") == 30.5
-        assert time_to_seconds("0.5") == 0.5
-
-    def test_real_world_sacct_examples(self):
-        """Test with realistic sacct time values from actual output."""
-        # From your test data
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:01:31") == 91  # 1 minute 31 seconds
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:24.041") == 24.041  # 24.041 seconds
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:03.292") == 3.292  # 3.292 seconds
-        assert time_to_seconds("00:20.749") == 20.749  # 20.749 seconds
-
-        # Longer running jobs
-        assert time_to_seconds("02:15:30") == 2 * 3600 + 15 * 60 + 30  # 2h 15m 30s
-        assert time_to_seconds("1-12:00:00") == 86400 + 12 * 3600  # 1 day 12 hours
-        assert time_to_seconds("7-00:00:00") == 7 * 86400  # 1 week
-
-    def test_empty_and_invalid_inputs(self):
-        """Test empty, None, and invalid inputs."""
-        assert time_to_seconds("") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("   ") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds(None) == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds(pd.NA) == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("invalid") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("1:2:3:4") == 0  # Too many colons
-        assert time_to_seconds("abc:def") == 0
-        assert time_to_seconds("-1:00:00") == 0  # Negative values
-
-    def test_whitespace_handling(self):
-        """Test that whitespace is properly handled."""
-        assert time_to_seconds(" 30 ") == 30
-        assert time_to_seconds("  1-02:30:45  ") == 86400 + 2 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
-        assert time_to_seconds("\t12:30:45\n") == 12 * 3600 + 30 * 60 + 45
-
-    def test_pandas_na_values(self):
-        """Test pandas NA and NaN values."""
-        assert time_to_seconds(pd.NA) == 0
-        assert (
-            time_to_seconds(pd.NaType()) == 0 if hasattr(pd, "NaType") else True
-        )  # Skip if not available
-
-    def test_edge_case_values(self):
-        """Test edge case values that might appear in SLURM output."""
-        # Zero padding variations (should work with datetime parsing)
-        assert time_to_seconds("01:02:03") == 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
-        assert time_to_seconds("1:2:3") == 1 * 3600 + 2 * 60 + 3
-
-        # Single digit values
-        assert time_to_seconds("5") == 5
-        assert time_to_seconds("1:5") == 1 * 60 + 5
-
-
 class TestEfficiencyReport(snakemake.common.tests.TestWorkflowsLocalStorageBase):
     __test__ = True