Teachers - what do you offer them?

[Spixie33]

Hi....I am having terrible luck with teachers in my daycare. I get them to come interview and talk with me but so far the teacher group seems to be nearly impossible to get on the dotted line.

So this makes me wonder whether it is my fees for summer or what. I hope I can pick everyone's brain to see what you offer to teachers.

My policy is that I hold a one week deposit always for all parents...teacher or non

During the summer I offer teachers the summer off with NO pay except I will hold their deposit. I don't mind not getting the $$$ during the summer because lighter workload, time with my own kids, plus I am off part of the summer as well makes it worth it for me.

The question that teachers seem to ask me most and seem most worried about is summer vacay. I can't imagine how much easier I could make summer for these potential parents but they still seem to call me and tell me they went with other providers. I don't get it.

I guess it is a matter of pride and curiousity right now for me to wonder why the teachers group seems so hard to secure whereas other parents with other careers seem much more open to signing with my daycare and I have to turn them away at times.

[dodge__driver11]

I have never had a teacher sign, but if I do ever I divide my monthly rate by 10 months. IE: 500 x 12 divided by 10 then you get paid for the months she isnt there and she can take them off

[VictoriaChildCare]

I've only had 1 teacher. Our deal was: if I could fill her space for times she was off she didn't have to pay. It happened to work out for 3 years as some of my previous school aged dc kids would need care.
Maybe next time you can ask: for my own professional curiosity; what made you choose the other daycare over mine?

[fruitloop]

The way my contract is, anyone taking an extended holiday of more than 3 weeks pay half fees. All parents pay for their holiday time (Christmas and spring break) and sick days but when taking the extended holiday/absence then half fees apply. I get a lot of teachers in care and they have never complained about this arrangement. They are basically paying for 11 months of child care but getting 12. In exchange, I get a lighter work load in the summer (sometimes even 3/4 of the summer off). I allow them to bring their child up to 6 times/month over the summer (July & August). I give them a list of available date that they can use and they pick from there. Sometimes they use all of them, some only a few, and some not at all. I do it this way so that I still get an income over the summer and it pays to hold their spots until they return in Sept. I think I would have a hard time signing on the teachers if I charged them more/month to cover the summer absence.

[Play and Learn]

For myself:
I am done work end of June just like the teachers. That last week of work, I ask for a non-refundable 2-week deposit to hold their spot for when I open up again (or when they start end of August). This is all that they pay me during the summer. When they start, it's a new contract again, with new daily fees.

It's been working so far, and haven't had any issues.

[playfelt]

I charge slightly more during the Sept - June to compensate for the summer and then have a couple summer options depending on if they want the child to come 1-2 days a week etc.

Your hours of care, your overtime rate and what you base that on could be one issue. I know I signed a teacher on one time because she was finding people were basing care on her working hours and charging overtime from there. While school ends at a certain time and on most days she could come right after there were also days a parent calls at the last minute or she is asked to fill in on bus duty for another teacher. Because I based my rates on up to 10 hours even though she only normally used just under 9 she signed because I agreed not to charge her for the first 20 minutes past her normal time which was only 9 1/2 hours so well within by timeline.

[horsegirl]

If a teacher wants me to hold the spot during the summer, and if I do not need the $$ I may ask for 80% of the fee, but this does not mean they can drop off their child whenever they like. They may only bring them 80% of the time as stated in their contract. I will let them know when they can bring them, or they may decide not to bring them at all. I tell them that this gives them time to shop, go to appts and their child always has a playtime. If they do not want to pay me then I tell them their contract is terminated at the end of June and they will have to call me at the end of August and see if I have an opening, which more than likely I will have filled and they need to find alternate care. The norm has been that they are happy with the care and will gladly pay. I even give them the option to find someone to fill their spot and if after I interview them and see that they will fit into the daycare I will take the new family for the summer. Then the original parent does not have to pay. This has worked well for me.