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I'm new to daycare and currently do not charge parents for my 3 weeks vacation time. What are other providers doing about this? I feel like it's not fair to parents to have them pay for child care when they are not here. But on the other hand is it fair that we don't have paid vacation? Most employers in the real world offer this as a benefit. Shouldn't we have our own perks, after all its our business?Torn and still feel parents shouldn't pay. Any suggestions, or thoughts on this?
I have always had my parents pay for vacation time. I take two weeks, stat holidays and six floater sick days. I also email my vacation sheet for the whole following year in November. Parents never have less than two months notice of days off and about eight or ten months of my holidays. I find that most of my parents can then take holidays the same time I do.
All of my parents have found this to be quite reasonable. It is all about finding people that value their provider. :)
Hi Jenn !
I think that, one way or another, parents will end up paying for your holidays. If you do not charge them directly, your monthly rate will go up so that you can afford to go on holidays without worrying about not getting any income during those days. If you do charge for your holidays, your rate will stay low, but parents will pay during your holidays.
In the end, it really depends about what parents are confortable with. Maybe advertising a lower rate can bring more customers though; but will they find that you're "exagerating" for asking them to pay for your vacations ?
Hello Jenn,
Like you, I do not charge my parents my vacation days or sick days. I have found that parents appreciate this as they have to find alternate care for those days where I am not working. I am lucky enough to be able to not worry about that extra income coming in.
I also have my own dance school, and take holidays - parents do not pay for my holidays.
Just depends on what the 'perks' of your daycare are. I am on the high end of daily rates, but am also qualified.
Hello Jenn,
I have 7 paid days in my contract which I use either if I or my children are sick. I also take the entire month of August off which I don't charge for. I have found that with parents taking vacation that it often all happens around the same time. I have often found in the past that if I would take a week off the parents who valued my care would pay me regardless.
I hope that helps.
Jenifer
I don't charge for my vacation. I don't think I would have kids here if I did. I also give my families 2 weeks vacation for free. And if you can believe it some parents have complained that 2 weeks wasn't enough...lol
The way I do it is I take three weeks a year off. If they take the same weeks as me they do not get charged. If they take different weeks then I charge them.
I take two weeks of holidays unpaid. However, their holidays or sick days are paid.
Hi Jenn, I don't charge parents for days that I take off for vacations. I take 5 weeks a year - 3 throughout the summer and 2 at Christmas. I do charge for stat holidays and parents pay for vacation time that they take if its outside my own scheduled vacation times. Five weeks is a lot of unpaid time, so I have to plan ahead by saving money throughout the year to cover those weeks.
Wow as you can tell Jenn from the replies it is totally a personal decision and there is no right or wrong answer. What I would do if you are still unsure is call the other providers in your area and ask them what their policy is (do let them know you are a provider I do not like when another provider calls pretending to be a parent looking for information it is better to be honest and who knows you might hit it off and do playdates together!) then look over your list and see what the majority says.
I too do not charge parents when I am not providing the service. I do charge parents half fees to hold their child's spot when they are on vacation so if they book the same holidays as me then they win if not then it will cost them.
Being self employed does not mean we are entitled to the same purks as parents working for an employer but we can make our own policies and then it is just finding the right families that will accept them.
Good luck Jenn with your decision.
What about teachers? When they want 2 weeks off at Christmas, 1 week off at March Break and then 2 months during the summer without paying. It is not easy to find another child to share that spot so we lose a lot of money during that time.
What are your thoughts?
My contract states that I am open 49 weeks per year and payment is due for that amount of time unless I am closed any extra days in excess of my 3 weeks vacation time. It's very simple and straightforward that payment is due no matter what happens, sick days, snow days, or any missed days at all on the parent's part. If the parents decide to take a week off at Christmas or any other time they know their payment is due also. If I have to close for any reason then payment is not due.
Same here - 2 weeks free for parents, then after that they have to pay half the rate to save the childs spot (and I get some income!).Quote:
Originally Posted by elliesmom
I only take teachers children as my hubby's a teacher - so it works out quite well! I just hope I can continue on finding teachers kids!Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrs. Laurie
I take 10 paid sick days per year and 3 week of unpaid holiday time per year. Parents pay if they are on holidays though...full fees unless they take an extended absence of more than 3 weeks at a time (teachers). Then they pay half fees to hold their spot for when they return.
I have to totally agree with Mrs. Laurie. We do make our own rules and we are not entitled to the same perks as working for an employer.
The whole point is to find parents that are willing to work with you. I always tell my parents that it is not a bad thing if I am not the care provider for them. I also haven't gotten upset when parents have chosen to leave either. Parents need to find childcare providers that work for them too.
Laurie has a good point about calling local providers in your area. Find out what their policy's are and such. It will give you a good guideline to follow. The most important thing to do is to follow what you believe in. There is lots of parents that are needing good day homes.
My contract allows me 3 weeks unpaid vacation (one week always over Christmas). 6 paid 'sick' days. Parents get 2 weeks unpaid vacation too but pay for more than that. My prices are set to weekly terms too, so I get paid for stat holidays.
I do not charge for Vacation Time but I do charge for sick time. If a child is sick for more then 3 days then they do not have to pay, but for just one day it is still a regular pay day. However if I am sick they do not pay. I do charge extra for PA days and snow days $10.00 additional per child. My advise to you if you have just started charge for vacation time - it is a big chunk of change when you loose out for those days.
Good Luck :)
I don't charge for my holidays either. I do, however, charge for the odd day here and there that I may close. My families pay upfront for the entire month and it's cheaper (I hate that word ha ha) to just pay the full monthly rate, than for me to pro-rate. I give at least 1 month notice to close a day, other than a stat, and at least 3 months, if not more, for summer holidays.
I do have a teacher's family. The lighter workload over the summer, when my own children are not in school, is a welcome thing around here. I budget for that loss of income, and I hold their deposit to keep their spots.
I dont charge for my vacation time either, i feel that if I am not available to provide care then they "may" need to pay someone else.
My policy is that if i am open then you pay.
That being said I do know of several providers who do charge for their vacation time. The best bet is to talk to other providers in your area to get a feel for what the "norm" is.
I charge the parents as if it is a 4 week month, when there is actually closer to 4.5 weeks in a month. For example full time parents only pay for 20 days of care and the extra days they have not paid for I take as my holidays. This way parents pay the same amount every month and it is easier for the bookkeeping. I am flexible with my holidays and I ask the parents to let me know if they are planning a special holiday and I will gladly change my holidays to suit everyone. Parents pay for stat holidays if there day of care falls on the holiday.
I have also added 5 sick/ emergency days per year in my contract without the fees varying. I guess I am immune to all the illnesses now as I do not get sick.
If parents decide to take time off from daycare or Grandma is in town and will look after the child they are still charged. I feel that this is a contract just as having a mortgage or car payment is a contract. If you go away you still have to pay the mortgage and the car payment. The bank will not give you a deal or tell you that payment is not needed if you're away.
As Mrs Laurie stated if you are self employed you make the contract and rules for your daycare. The right families will find you and become part of your daycare.
Being a subsidized daycare in quebec means my daycare parents only pay 7$ a day.
I am closed 2 weeks at christmas and 3 weeks in the summer as well as all stat holidays .
All my time off is payable . The only time I do not charge is when I close the daycare (due to illness/appointments )
When I was a private daycare (25 day) I took 3 weeks vacation and 2 were payable.
It really does matter what the norm is in your area and is very much so a personal choice:)
Love this idea of 20 business days for full time, I did the math and that leaves approx 20 days in 2011 that you could call your time off and parents are not paying for, yet you still get the full monthly fee. Really great idea. Thanks!Quote:
Originally Posted by horsegirl
I have done some research on this when I completed my parent's handbook and found that this was a controversial topic. I had decided that I would take one week of vacation PAID and one week NOT PAID and i thought that was pretty fair for both parties. I also decided to take all STAT holidays OFF PAID. We all need a break here and there and since most parents are off, I thought that was fair too.
Do most people take stat holidays off paid? I am currently closed for those days, and unpaid. Are parents ok with being charged for those days if you are closed?
I charge for Stat Holidays. Parents are fine with it!Quote:
Originally Posted by waterloo day mom
I have a family leaving:(, and their last day is Thursday but is technically Friday, and since it's Canada Day and I'm closed, she's alright with paying for that day.
I charage for stat holidays. Most parents are also paid for those days where they work. There are exceptions including those that work part time or do contract work so in the past I have let some of my part timers get away with not paying for ALL of the stats but still charged them for some of them. I don't take large blocks of holiday time so I take 10 paid stat days and parents have 10 days in the summer to use as unpaid holiday time so it evens out. PT people are prorated for days off unpaid so to some degree I prorate the stats they pay for - but only if they whine or I really like them.
I charge for all stat days. I take 5 weeks of vacation, which I don't charge for and I don't charge for my own sick days either. Parents pay me for their holidays if it's outside of my dates and they pay for days their child is sick and does not attend.
My parents have never had an issue with paying me for stat days. It's in my contract and I think it's to be expected.
I give my parents one week off unpaid, I take one week off unpaid and if they take another week they do 1/2 pay this way we are all
happy!
It looks like this issue really comes down to personal preference (on behalf of the provider and parents) and what the "norm" is in your area.
I take off stat holidays, 10 calendar days vacation time and up to 4 personal days in a year. If my rates were on the higher end of the spectrum, then I may not be able to get away with this. But I am priced completely within normal range for my area. Full time parents pay a flat monthly fee, each and every month. As I have mentioned before, this secures them a spot in the dayhome for that month, under the agreed upon timeframes regarding drop off and pick up. I don't really charge daily or hourly fees in that sense. My part timers pay a daily rate (more than what the full time daily rate would be). They pay for the days they use, so they don't pay for my holidays or sick days.
If a family doesn't bring their child (because of sickness or their own holidays), they still pay the regular monthly rate. If someone was to take an extended leave, then I would work out some sort of deal. I have a family that just left for the summer; dad is a teacher. I will not charge them for their spot for a couple reasons. My own kids are now off school, I am taking the month of September off to have a baby and then they will come back in October, and they are a great family to deal with. Then again, they are part-time and it may be different if it was a full-timer. Part timers are just extra money for me!