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If you charge for your vacation, how do you manage it if a family leaves half-way through the year?
Example - you sign an annual agreement, which includes two weeks + 3days vacation - they give notice that their last day will be June 30th.
Do you charge for the vacation days that have accrued?
If you want to be a stickler then yes charge for a week + 1-1/2 days. Personally I would not and just let it go. I would rather a family leave on good terms then with the last thing they remember is having to pay for my vacation that I hadn't even taken yet. Just my opinion though and I don't charge my families for my personal vacation so what do I know!
I would only charge families for the actual weeks they were enrolled.
I don't think it's fair to charge them for time/days they will no longer be clients.
I guess it depends on how your contract is set up... you mentioned accrued vacation days...
How is this done and what is the benefit to doing it that way, if I may ask?
I'd just charge for the days that you used while they were in care. You should have another family enrolled for the future vacation...you should only get paid for that vacation time from the family currently in care.
In the "bigger" business world you would get paid out for vacation accrued if YOU left the job before using the days...but I think this is a bit different in that THEY are leaving but you will still take that vacation time later on.
I think quitting a job and leaving daycare are not similar enough for comparison although I appreciate the perspective.
This particular family & I have an excellent relationship and I will do before school care for them come fall; that said, they were originally supposed to keep their child with me full time until September. I have the spot for September filled. Problem is, I am now left with a vacant spot for two months - something I was not prepared for.
I was just curious if others have had any experience with a similar situation.
daisy - I had a similar situation happen. I had 1 dcb who was going to school in sept so I had filled his spot for then already. I ended up getting their notice the last 2 weeks of June. They had arranged other care for summer and not told me until the last minute. I wasn't impressed!! Anyways I ended up being able to fill the spot for 5 weeks in summer so I did loose out on a few week's pay. It sucks but unfortunately part of the job. I don't get paid vacation time but if I was you I would not charge them either.
If they are leaving I would think they do not owe vacation pay . I think better to keep the relationship as they say they are coming back in September , hopefully . I am finding in this business that I do not count on anything !!!
Why would they take off the summer and then come back in September ? I personally would fill the spot .
So their last day of full time care is June 30th, but then you are taking the child back in September for before school care? Hhhmmmm…….They aren't actually leaving but changing their contract. I would have made them pay some sort of holding fee to keep their spot, even though their needs for care will be changing. In essence they just want to take the summer off without paying you and then come back to you again in the fall. Forget about the vacation pay, that isn't the real issue. If someone wants to go on a leave of absence, which in effect is what this family has done, they have to pay a minimum of three days per week (whether they use them or not is up to them). I likely would have let them pay the Before and After school rate over the summer to hold their spot since they are switching to Before School, but I definitely wouldn't have let them stop coming for two months with no charge to only come back in the fall. Do I have your situation sorted out correctly??
I am not actually holding a spot for them - their before school care does not impact my numbers in the upcoming school year due to various drop-off times with the other families and their early bus pick-up time.
I guess I am just feeling a bit jilted because they have known for some time that she wouldn't be staying, but only informed me because I asked.
I run my business with five full time spots for the entire year and count on that income. I have been blessed in this way, but I have also been very careful about what families I take and will work with.
Anyway, like I said, I was just curious if any of you who DO charge for your holiday time expect compensation for it if a family leaves just before you are about to use it. Maybe I worded it wrong.
And for those of you who don't expect pay for your holidays, why not? Although that question probably deserves it's own thread.
For myself I don't charge for holidays or days I close because I am sick. That seems to be the norm around my area. If we don't work we don't get paid. I do charge for 10 stat/civic holidays though, those are the only days I charge for when I am closed. I also give parents a reduced rate by $5 if they take holidays and give me one month's notice.
mickyc, wow - I don't know how you do it! I know I certainly couldn't! Why should you take a pay cut because someone else is on vacation?? Seems a bit off balance to me. :(
I just recently started giving a $5 a day discount for the families holidays ONLY if they give me one month's notice. I use it as an incentive for parents to: 1. actually tell me when their holidays are booked for - if I have a few kids I like to go on outings or possibly close myself - and 2. encourage people to actually take holidays and spend it with their children. I have had too many "I am paying you therefore I will send my child no matter what" families. If they don't give one month's notice then no discount. I think of it as I am still getting paid for my time but not getting the money to cover for the food they would eat and seeing that they aren't here I don't have that expense to feed their child.
mickyc, it sounds like you have a good grasp on what works for you! And, THAT is one of the biggest advantages any home daycare provider can have! :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by daisy
If they wanted to still have me provide care for their child in any capacity, they would have been required to pay something over the two months of summer whether or not their new needs had an effect on my numbers. They aren't actually leaving your services, they are taking a break and then coming back and using your services in a different capacity. That was my point.
I don't think you worded anything wrong, I just saw a different issue in the whole scenario that would have been an issue for me.
In answer to your original question, if a family was leaving my care I would not charge them for vacation time that they weren't around for. You can't charge them for vacation that takes place when they are no longer enrolled. BUT, in your case, I don't know what I would do because it seems as though they left to take a break for the summer, free of any fees, and then are coming back. It's not a situation that I would have agreed to in the first place.
I don't charge for my holidays. It is not done in my area, and I personally don't feel comfortable charging when my services are not available knowing that at least half my families have to find alternative care, the other half take their vacation the same time as me.